Until That Day
by Seldavia
Summary: Collaborative fic with nnceLIBSTAnnce. Nabooru is poor, young, and completely alone. When she is caught following Ganondorf, she is later appointed his second in command. As the days go by, she hates it a bit less.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: The first ten chapters of this is actually nnceLIBSTAnnce's fic. She was unable to continue it, and asked for someone to pick it up. Since it was one of my favorite stories, I offered to take it on.  
**

_Fuck, fuck, fuck..._

I was racing through the gates of the Haunted Wasteland, on my way to the horse's stables. I crossed the forbidden desert to find the Spirit Temple. It's like my own personal beacon of hope in this world of hate and war. I found my way to the roof, and sat staring at the endless sands until sundown. I feel like anything is possible when I'm there. Endless desert, endless possibilities. Nobody can hurt me. Once I realized how late it was, I ran across the Wasteland back to the Fortress. It was my duty to look after the King's horses. If they weren't fed at a certain hour, I'd be locked up…or worse. I finally got to the stables, without any of the 'highly trained' Fortress guards noticing me. _Pssh_. _Highly trained. _They didn't even see me. I have had no privilege of _training_, and I was far more skilled than any of those mediocre girls.

As soon as I fed the horses their meal and brushed their manes, I made my way to the water troth by the large window. I removed my veil (rag actually) and dunked my head in. I was covered in sweat, and this was my only source of remotely clean water. As long as I'm not caught polluting the water the spoiled horses won't even drink, I'm fine.

Then I heard footsteps. I flipped my hair back out of the water, and it slapped against my back. It made a loud noise that alerted the horses. They started to snort, and that caught this girl's attention. I silently made my way to the shadows, behind a horse's stable. I got chills from my wet hair dripping down my back along with the chill in the winter night air. I was suddenly thankful to not live in the northernmost parts of Hyrule; it must be snowing by this time of year. I peered out from behind the wall and saw this person take the King's stallion out of its stable, saddle up, and take off. Nobody was allowed to take the horses out of the stables but me, and I only left them tied outside for another girl to get them for the King. So, not wanting to be held responsible for the King's horse's kidnapping, I started to follow. I wasn't quite sure what I would do about this, but I thought it an obligation to at least try to do my simple job the right way.

It was pitch black outside, and I couldn't make out this mystery thief. They started heading out to the Haunted Wasteland, but stopped short at the gates. I sidestepped behind a large rock as quickly as I could. I was frozen in fear as I heard heavy footsteps getting closer and closer. I squeezed my eyes shut, wishing I could disappear. Suddenly, there was a big hand around my left arm, pulling me toward a looming shadow.

_Joy..._

"Who are you?" A deep voice demanded. It was the Gerudo King himself, Ganondorf. This is my first time seeing him. And I hated it. I was loosing feeling in my arm from his grasp, as he asked again, "Who are you?!"

"Nabooru, at your service, your highness." I bowed my head, trying not to show struggle on my face from under his powerful grip, and water dropped onto his arm from my wet, stringy hair.

I was suddenly pushed to the ground. I was sort of glad to feel pain in my back and hip; at least he wasn't crushing my arm. I tried to compose myself.

"Do you think you had the right to follow me out here?" He stood above me, his angry eyes fixed on me.

"No, I don't, your highness."

"Then why did you?" He was starting to get angry, I could tell.

I hesitated. "I am responsible for your horse, your highness. I couldn't see you, and thought maybe somebody was stealing it."

He started to laugh. It was a pretty creepy laugh, actually. "So you thought that you could stop them? A pathetic disgrace of a girl like you?" He smirked at me.

I said nothing. He was really starting to anger me. I could have taken him down if I didn't know any better. I've been teaching myself how to wield a scimitar since I was ten. I looked at him, and could feel my face transform into an expression reading: _Of course I could handle it, what did you think?_

He snapped his fingers in the air, and out of nowhere a guard still decked out in her purple uniform jumped me, sword in hand. I whipped out mine in defense, nearly ripping straight through my rags. I jumped up, still blocking her slashing movements, and she backed off immediately. She tried to elbow me in the stomach, but I sidestepped and put my right leg through hers and elbowed her in the throat, knocking her to the ground.

After a moment of hearing nothing but her gagging and my heavy breathing, Ganondorf spoke. "You are dismissed." He glared at her with low opinion in his eyes. I had almost forgotten that he was there.

The girl who attacked me slowly limped off, still gasping for air after my harsh strike to her gut and throat.

I stood face to face with the King of my race. He must have been at least a head taller than me. He didn't look like he was even trying to look mean and scary. That's just how he was. He looked at me up and down with a certain, very noticeable amount of assessment.

"Why haven't I seen you in the line-up before?" he asked.

"I'm not in any line ups, your highness." I didn't even know what the hell a line-up was.

"Really?" He finally looked me in the eye. His face started to look a little bit less angry by the moment. "Who is your family, then?"

"I am an orphan, your highness. My mother died a few years ago, when I was nine." I could tell how badly this sounded. A girl in my position should have died or been exiled from the desert by now, due to lack of any real use.

He didn't say anything. He just kept staring at me. It seemed like I was exactly what he wanted to see right then. I didn't want to look away, to make it more awkward. I just blanked out, forgetting what was actually happening. I stared into his eyes without any readable expression on my face.

"Where do you live?" I was thankful for this break in silence, though I really didn't want to tell him. "I sleep in the stables, your highness."

"Nabooru…" was all he said. He got back on his horse, and took off to the Spirit Temple. I was frozen in place. That was really weird. I didn't know why he sent some stupid guard to attack me, or why he didn't lock me up for following him. Maybe he was remembering my name so he could have me killed. Either way, that was by far the creepiest person I had ever met in my life. Believe me, I have met my share of psychos in the past few years. I never wanted to see him again. Something about him just made me feel so timid, when I usually carried myself with a fiery, vigorous manner. My legs carried me to the stables once more. After hours of endless thoughts, I fell asleep on the cold hard ground. And only to dream horrible dreams.


	2. Chapter 2

I woke up to the sound of horses stamping next to my ear. It was dawn, so I got up, figuring it was better than sleeping and dreaming about…_him. _I really hope Ganondorf has it out for me, because I can't stand these nightmares anymore. They all consist of him not letting me leave his side, like I was a little puppy. Every time I tried to run, I would just end up back with him. No matter how far I ran, and no matter how fast I ran, I always ended up at his side one more. It was horrible, like dreams when you scream for help, but no sound comes out of your mouth. I found it better to live on two hours of sleep than to dream more. The last nightmare I remember having, I was almost seven, and it was about my mother. She just left me in the Wasteland to die of starvation. Ever since that dream, I was more distant from my mother, up to the day she died. I regretted letting my stupid nightmare affect my real life mind state, but there was nothing I could do about it now.

I sat up, rubbed my eyes, and looked outside the large window beside me. Something about sunrise makes me so uncomfortable. I hate the cold air, and the pale purple color of the sky. I walked outside anyway, trying to walk off my nightmares. I just blanked out, forgetting how cold and ugly it was. I'm good at that. It's what I do when I don't like what's happening. I made my way down the hill to the Fortress, and snuck in through the last entrance to the left. I don't think anybody here knows I still exist. I'm not saying that just because I think they don't care about me, it's because I am hidden half of the time. The rest of my time I'm at the Spirit Temple. I went through the secret passage that led to the living quarters. The only way I knew it was there was remembering where I lived before my mother died. As soon as I came running down the hall, calling for help with tears staining my cheeks, they took her away and took my home with her. More deserving people moved in, and I was kicked out.

I stole some of the Kokiri herbs from another girl's quarters, and stuffed them into my mouth. They tasted horrible but they keep me alive. Once I got back outside, the sun was up. It was warmer, and I started to feel better after the first ray hit my skin. I saw all the girls start walking to their sword wielding classes, and the morning guards patrolling 'diligently'.When I was in the midst of the day's beginning, watching my former classmates grow up without me as I did everyday, somebody called my name. _What the hell? Who here knows my name?_ Not even my old classmates would identify me if it came down to pushing me into the river or not.

I turned around to see a girl dressed head to toe in white. She was of high rank. I bowed my head slightly, and looked at her slanted eyes.

"Yes, ma'am?"

"Follow me."

I had no idea what the hell she was getting at, but I followed her anyway, mimicking her pompous saunter for the first few steps. I followed her through what felt like a million halls, around millions of corners, all the way to the back of the fortress. Neither of us spoke a word to anyone we passed. As we passed girls, they turned to whisper to their friends, keeping eye contact on me. They seemed to be saying, 'There goes that girl, the one who should be dead.'.

We finally reached a wooden door. She opened it, and stood aside. I cautiously walked into the small, bright room, as if something were about to pop out at me. The next thing I knew, two girls came up to me, and ordered me to hold out my arms. I did as I was told in fear of punishment. They measured everything from my ankles and up, including my wrists and neck. These girls were dressed in black. Middle rank. I felt so out of place in rags I stole from the market place shop canvasses in Hyrule Castle town. They quickly went behind a curtain comparing measurements, and the girl who led me here motioned for me to follow her again. _What the fuck is this? Am I getting fitted for hanging ropes? I hope so..._

After what felt like hours of walking up stairs, we reached the top level of the Fortress. It was much nicer up here. More windows, less stone walls. The girl unlocked two big doors, and let me pass her through them onto a blue carpet. She shut them once I was through. I looked around. The only thing in front of me was two thrones: One on the center of the carpet, and a smaller one next to it. There were four windows on the wall facing the rest of the Fortress, each with small ornaments in them.

Out of nowhere, the one person I dreaded most appeared. I was almost expecting it, but I still jumped a bit wen I heard him behind me.

"Hello, Nabooru. Good to see you again." Ganondorf walked toward me slowly, my heartbeat getting faster with each step. What a creep.

I bowed down, and said, "Hello, your highness."

"Have you been measured yet?"

"Yes, your highness." I was so scared I could barely speak. He must have picked up on this.

"There is no reason for you to be afraid of me. Allow me to show you your new home."

"Home?" I asked.

"Of course. You can't be my second in command and not be with me at all times."

My heart fell through my stomach. _Second in command?! No. This is a dream, it must be._

"Second in command, your highness?" I managed.

"Yes. I have appointed you my second in command. You are to help me make decisions regarding politics, and fight with me in times of war from now on."

I stared at him in disbelief. He stuck out his big hand, and I flinched, expecting a blow to the face. He just stared at me. I slowly lifted my hand, and took his. My otherwise big hand and long fingers looked so small compared to his. But, something about his hand seemed a lot better than the rest of him to me. I felt a little less awkward, somehow. He led me to my new bed chamber., Through the door beside the thrones. It was all red and gold; even the door had been painted. It was simple, really, all there was was a lot of paintings of the Goddess Din and the Colossus, some incense, and a bed. Still, it was a lot better than the dirty floor in the stables. I looked at it in shock. I couldn't exactly drink all of this in so well.

"Why are you choosing me for this? Isn't there any other girl you could pick?! I'm only fourteen, what do I know about politics?!" My head was spinning. I couldn't even see straight.

"I will handle most of that. You fight well, and that is why I chose you." He looked right into my eyes, and I had to hold back a chill. I wasn't looking forward to anything from here.

"Would you prefer to live in the stables again?" He looked as if he already knew the answer.

"No..." I guess not.

"That's what I thought you might say. So, from now on you live here with me, and you will have your new clothes made by tonight. Speaking of tonight," he said, a grin forming on his face.

He was interrupted by the girl who brought me here at the door.

"Your highness, you are needed in the main hall."

Ganondorf turned his attention back to me. All he did was grin his evil little grin, and walk away.

I was dizzy. My mouth was dry. Everything was blurry. My whole life had changed, quite literally, from rags to riches in one instant. And when he said _'Speaking of tonight', _I had almost lost it. I didn't believe it was happening, and all so fast. I was his mistress.

I was Ganondorf's second in command. But in a way, I was glad. I wasn't alone.

That feeling disappeared as quickly as it came. At first, all I could do was stand in place. Then I started to run. I ran through the Fortress, and all the way to Gerudo Valley. I stopped once I reached Hyrule Field. I don't know where I was planning on going, but I started to walk anyway. It suddenly dawned on me: I have family in Termina! I could go through Kokiri Forest, all the way to Clock Town, and get to my cousin Aveil in the Great Bay! Then my head chimed in, overpowering my heart.

It would take me days. I had no food, no horse, and no idea which way to go.

My feet started moving back to Gerudo Valley. I felt like I was watching myself walk to hell from somewhere far away. I didn't exactly know what to expect in either scenario. I found it easier to put up with Ganondorf than to die...In a _forest. _My mind wavered from leaving, staying, leaving, and back again. I slowly made it back to the Fortress, and to my new bed chambers. I looked out the window at the sun, and wondered what the Golden Goddesses had out for me. I looked at my bed, and wondered what girl had it before me. It was more than likely the girl that led me here. I shook my head, and looked to a door that I hadn't noticed. I crept to it, and opened it slowly. There was a huge marble tub, almost as tall as my elbows. There was a glass box protruding from the wall across from the door, and next to it, cloths hanging from a bar. And then I started thinking more about who this life belonged to before I came along. I shut the door and walked back into my bed chambers. The paintings on the wall were scarily real looking, the eyes of Din following me with each step. I looked at the canopy over my new bed, and then followed the wooden down to the rugs on the floor. I let out an exasperated sigh at seeing these things. I was wondering whether to jump from the window to the hard ground beneath me, letting the stupid guards see me break every bone in my body or not.

My head told me to stay, and be thankful for the new home and privileges. But my heart told me my life isn't at all better this way.


	3. Chapter 3

After pondering whether or not to stay, and eventually deciding to, I had to go all the way to the fitting rooms, back upstairs to my bed chambers, to the main hall, and back again. _Five fucking times._ I counted twenty flights of stairs, at least thirty different hallways, and by the time they had my new clothes made, I was exhausted. My legs were weak, and I was walking slower than my usual frantic pace. I got more or less the exact same clothes as the girl who led me everywhere; white harem pants and one little piece of fabric for a top, but I had gloves that ended at my elbow. At least I was wearing something other than rags. I had the same ones since my mother died. It felt so good to wear something that didn't scratch my arms and legs up, or cause me to overheat and faint on an almost daily basis. Every girl who worked on my clothes wouldn't stop telling me how beautiful I looked in them.

"I wish I looked that good in my clothes," Lati, the girl tailoring my pants so they puffed out even _more_, said with a small pout in her voice.

"Your stomach is much flatter than mine," said Ival, who was re-measuring my waist and arms without my rags on. Truth be told, I never noticed how flat my stomach was until they said so. Then again, I was wearing rags that covered every inch of my body but my hands, feet, and eyes.

"All done?" Asked Sushmita, the girl who led me through the Fortress, when Lati and Ival rolled up their measuring ropes. She was waiting patiently in the back of the room, fiddling with her straight hair.

"Yes." Lati said, giving my pants one last tug. They were so tight around my hips, they didn't budge. _Fun._

"Follow me, Miss Nabooru." Sushmita started to the door. _Wow, I'm 'Miss Nabooru' now. _This was starting to bug me. I hated this air of formality; it was beginning to make me sick. Before I stepped down from the little platform I was on, I glanced at my reflection in the mirror. I didn't recognize anything but my round, gold eyes.

Sushmita and I walked through the door and down the hall to get my new jewelry. I was stood on another platform in front of a mirror. One girl, Farah, came up to me with a big comb and began to untangle my long, crimson hair. I'm sure that by the time she was finished raking that thing through my hair, I was at least two hundred hairs closer to being bald. While all that was happening, another girl, Yedal, clasped gold bands around my upper arms, neck, and ankles to keep my pants straight. Farah gathered my hair up in an obnoxiously high ponytail and clasped it in place with another gold band with a huge ruby attached to it. After she was done fussing with my hair, she put a thin gold band around my forehead with an amber stone in the center. They took me behind a short curtain and sat me in a chair. Then they flew at my face with who knows what, and after them ordering me to close my eyes, open my eyes, turn to one side, turn to another, and pulling at my eyebrows, they led me back out to the hallway. I caught a glimpse of my face in the mirror. I had a thick black line around my eyes, golden goo on my eyelids just a bit shinier than my eyes, perfectly arched eyebrows, and pale lips. I looked like a princess. A scared, upset, confused, somewhat pissed off princess.

At least, it didn't go to waste. I had to go with Ganondorf to Hyrule Castle to visit the King so he could pledge loyalty. _Sure._All he wanted from the King were those stupid stone things that Sushmita told me about. At least I got to ride my own horse; I was almost expecting to be sat on Ganondorf's lap like a little puppet. That's what I was now.

I tried to keep as far away from his horse on mine as possible. There were four guards with us, two in front of us and two behind. _Witnesses_, I thought. _Witnesses in case he tries to kill me or something crazy like that._ There was a decent amount of space between us and the guards, enough for us to speak about something confidential without them hearing. I was grateful for my lack of anything to say.

"So how do you like your new clothes?" Ganondorf asked, looking over at me briefly. I could tell he was trying to start a conversation, one that I was in no mood for, to be honest.

"I love them, thank you." I lied. I had to try not to sound sarcastic. He picked up on this too. At least he wasn't a moron, I'll give him that much.

"You don't have to wear them if you don't want to, Nabooru." He sounded like he was speaking to a child.

"What else would I wear?" I asked out of pure spite. I had no concern about how I looked.

I could have sworn I heard him chuckle. So, I decided to change the subject as quickly as I could so he couldn't say anything I would regret.

"Why are we making this trip?" I asked, even though I already knew. Anything to get his mind off of me being naked.

"So I can pledge my allegiance to the King. Didn't I already explain this to you?"

"Right. Sorry," I said. _Are we there yet? Please, please can we be there? Please!_

As I was thinking that, I saw that we were riding up to the Castle Drawbridge. _Yes!_

After dismounting the horses, leaving them with the guards stationed motionless at the front, and walking past some weird little redheaded girl singing in the marketplace, we made it to the castle. It was huge and quite regal, but not as intimidating and almost meaningful as our Fortress. We walked up to the throne room, after making our way through a curved foyer. I almost burst into laughter when I saw the King. Clearly I wasn't fit for a position such as this, but he just looked so pompous. He looked down upon Ganondorf and me, naturally. Everywhere a Gerudo goes, they are faced with prejudice, no matter how high their rank at home. I was ordered to remain in the back of the room. Every guard in the room was giving me 'the eye', mentally violating my personal space. I sighed quietly, _Hurry up, Ganondorf..._

I watched as Ganondorf walked up to the King, and bowed. He suddenly looked to the window beside him. He looked angry, but when the King addressed him, he snapped out of it. I wondered what he saw. That window outlooked the courtyard, what could possibly be so fascinating out there? After at least an hour of them babbling on in Hylian about politics, the war at least a decade prior, and something called "Spiritual Stones" that I heard from Sushmita earlier, we were dismissed. Thank Din, I was so bored.

It was nightfall by the time we made it back to Gerudo Valley. Of course, everybody greeted us and wanted to know how it went. I stood aside and watched Ganondorf try to explain to everybody what happened without getting more frustrated. This was actually the first good look I had gotten of him. His eyes were defiantly his most prominent feature. They matched the color of my forehead stone. They seemed angry by fault, but if I caught a glimpse of him when he thought nobody was watching him, they looked very tired. Although the rest of him was almost the same as everybody else, he seemed as evil as it gets. But if you look close enough, you can see that there is something making him that way. Being a sucker for a challenge, I set a goal that I would find out.

He was still struggling with his explanation to the noble women at dinner. I ate the fastest, the spice infused roasted meat being the first meal I have eaten in years. Unless, of course, you count left over rabbit meat from the wolves's jaw and tall grass a meal. After watching him explain to nine adoring women, including Sushmita (who wasn't as adoring as the rest), I was sent to the library to met him concerning plans on the possible start of a war. I never knew that there was a library here. It was filled with books on history of the desert, it's people, the Gerudo dialect, the Godesses, and more. They were all relatively thick and leather bound. I saw Ganondorf sitting at a small table with a map and a book open in the far corner, and I wondered how he got here and had time to start before I arrived. I slowly went over to him. I was alone here with him, and didn't like it very much. I felt unusually vulnerable around him, and was sending mental waves of resentment for it. I slowly sat down across from him, my back rigid. He looked up, and managed a half grin. _What is bothering him?_ It was starting to bother me, not knowing for certain.

"Are you alright?" I asked the flickering candle on the edge of the table quietly. I was almost afraid of speaking to him.

He looked at me, and smiled a very composed smile, something I didn't expect. He seemed to actually like having me around, without looking at my body, the way every man I have met attempted under my rags. "Yes. I just don't like the idea of starting another war with the Hylians." Something about his voice now was almost calm sounding.

_Maybe that was it._ "How did all of this start?"

"Today. You were there, remember?" He teased. I laughed for the first time in months. It was small, but it seemed to make him happy. He chuckled too, almost like it was an accident. He tried to cover it up with a cough, but I already heard. And that made _me _happy.

"I don't speak much Hylian. Besides, I thought we were there to pledge our allegiance."

"We were, but it didn't go too well." He stared back at the map, and tapped Hyrule Castle lightly with a quill before continuing. "Actually, I guess it was when I threatened him about the Spiritual Stones..." His voice went from the off-guard calm tone to a stressful one.

I raised my eyebrow. "The what?"

"Spiritual Stones. It's a long story," He said, dismissing the matter as quickly as it came. "I'm really sorry about the other night, Nabooru. About hurting you, and setting the guard off on you, I was just..." He trailed off. That came out of nowhere. But, he seemed really upset now.

"It's okay." I was starting to worry about him a little bit. Since when wasn't he completely disgusting and smug and evil?

"You said you are fourteen?" He asked, again completely out of the blue.

"Yes."

"You look older." He seemed like he felt awkward about this, not like I did. But, I could tell he wasn't as confident as he leads on to everybody else.

"Well, how old are you?" Yes, I realize that was somewhat tactless on my part. My specialty.

"Twenty."

_Liar! No fucking way are you that young! _I wanted to say. But all I did was stare at him. He wasn't lying. Either that or he was a really good liar. I don't fall for things easily. But he looked so much older, almost thirty, not twenty. But apparently I looked older too. So I stayed silent about this.

"What, you don't believe me?" He asked. _It's like he is reading my mind._

"I do." I looked out the window. The moon was full, and the wind was blowing. It was the best weather we've had here in a while. My mother told me that steady weather like this was a sign of prosper and happiness. _I'll believe it when I see it._

"I need to tell you something." He stopped what he was writing down on the map and looked at me.

"Yes?" I asked, almost dreading the answer.

"Since we're doing everything together from now on, I might as well let you know that I'm not really as horrible as I lead on before."

_...Right. _

"And remember when I said 'Speaking of tonight' earlier?"

"...Yeah..." I had almost forgotten about that. Now my back was rigid again, and I felt like backing up in my seat. My brain was mocking me: _I told you so._

"I only said that because I saw Sushmita standing in the doorway and I wanted to freak her out." He was trying not to laugh.

"Seriously?!" I said, overjoyed. _Dumb brain._

"Well, don't you sound happy," He said with another composed half smile.

"Of course I'm happy!" I slapped my hands on the table as gently as possible, out of shock and amusement at his reaction. I can't understand why I am acting this way. He looked at me funny, and I didn't blame him. We both just looked at each other for a bit before going to work on a plan for the war. Neither of us knew what we were doing. He only went into his reign five years ago, and I have no idea about any of this.

I realized that slowly but surely, I was hating Ganondorf less. He had a human side. And I had no problem with this side of him.


	4. Chapter 4

The next morning, I woke up from the best night's sleep I have ever had in my life. My new bed was so comfortable, and it had so many down pillows and silk sheets, I found it hard to get up. I just stayed there for about ten minutes until Sushmita came back to get me. I looked out the window, and saw the moon sinking below the horizon. W_as it that early? I should be clawing my eyes out right now..._

"Miss Nabooru, I need to escort you to get dressed." Sushmita said quietly, while she held her small hand out to me. I didn't even notice her come in, I was so relaxed.

"I'm coming," I said. I got up easily, and without ripping half of my hair out. I was usually the worst person to wake up early, but not today. There was something coursing through me that made it effortless for me to smile. And it was making me a bit worried.

I practically ran to the door I was so energetic. Sushmita remained calm and professional.

"How did you sleep, Miss Nabooru?" She was giving me a strange look.

"I slept very well. And you?" I was almost bouncing when I walked. I usually crossed my arms and shuffled my feet. But today I glided through the hallways of the Fortress so gracefully that every girl stared at me until I was out of sight. Even in my nightdress, I was confident.

"I slept well too, thank you." She paused a moment before speaking again. "I saw you in the library with King Ganondorf last night. How did everything go?" Her voice cracked when she said _everything._

I almost burst into laughter right in her face. Ganondorf really did phase her yesterday! I didn't know whether to play along with his act, or to tell the truth. I decided to be a bitch. My other specialty.

"Oh...It went _great." _I smiled for emphasis. She looked absolutely taken aback by this. I had to look away to suppress a revealing smile.

"You mean...you two..."

"Went over plans for the war?" I asked, giving her a weird look. I was biting my cheek to suppress my laughter.

"Oh. Right, of course," She said, unlocking the door. _Ha!_ _I'm horrible._

Sushmita called for Lati and Ival, who came running. They quickly had me dressed in sky blue harem pants and the little top with silver accents. More tailoring had to be done, and more flattering came with it.

Lati said I was too beautiful to describe. Ival said my eyes were bright today. I knew they were just trying to be nice, because it certainly wasn't true.

After they were done with my pants, I went to see Farah and Yedal. They complimented me on my long shiny hair and my elegant hands. The hands thing was at least original. I stared at the various bowls and jars full of powder, goo, and water while they spoke to me. It almost sounded as if they were flattering me straight into their beds. I knew that these compliments were part of their job, but I still liked to hear them. It gave me a good laugh, especially Yedal's; those were the best. They always had something to do with shine. I learned two things that morning: Kohl is what they put around my eyes, and Yedal is not bright.

All that I had to do today was sit on my throne. I had a_ throne_. That just added to my happiness. I found it hard to sit still. I was crossing and uncrossing my legs, shifting, and looking around. I was alone except for Sushmita who was standing at the door. She seemed equally as bored, although her face was stoic as can be. Mine must have been droopy, despite my happy disposition.

"Has anybody ever called you 'Sush' before?" I asked her.

"Not that I know of." She sounded grateful for any sound. I was grateful to know it wasn't unusual to be bored.

"What about 'Mita'?"

She took a moment to think about it. "No."

"I think I'll call you Mita, then."

"Okay," she said, that was the first time I had ever seen her smile. She looked adorable, like a little baby, even though she was older than me.

Just then, Ganondorf walked into the throne room. He seemed equally as cheerful as I was, but as soon as he saw Mita in the doorway, he stopped smiling. A smug look took the smile's place.

"You're dismissed, Sushmita."

"Happy today?" I asked once Sushmita was gone.

"Yes. All we have to do today is sit in here unless there is an emergency. I haven't done this in months!" H smiled while he talked.

"Were you this bored the last time?" I asked as I watched him sit down on his throne next to me.

"A bit. But this time I have better company than Sushmita."

I smiled a big, fake, toothy smile, and I have no idea why. That made him laugh. His laugh wasn't as creepy as I remembered. It was kind of contagious.

"Why are you so comfortable today?"

_How do you know I'm starting to get comfortable with all of this?_ I inhaled slowly before answering. "I'm not sure exactly. Maybe it's because you came clean about your little act last night?"

"Well, of course I did. I don't want you to think I'm evil. I want you to think I'm nice."

"Of course you do, so I don't tell anybody otherwise," I joked. He laughed at that, which I wasn't even aiming for. I didn't know why he was horrible to everybody else. So I asked.

"Why are you only like this when nobody else is around?"

He paused, and then said, "I just want to protect my reputation as a serious King, otherwise nobody will think me fit. And since we are going to be around each other almost all day every day, I don't want to have to act that way all the time." He grinned at me, as if thanking me for being so open to this idea.

_That makes sense, I guess._

"You can be serious and nice at the same time."

"Sure, just like you are," He chuckled.

"Well, I think it works for me."

I found out what royalty actually does all day. They sit on their thrones waiting for something better to happen.

I got just as bored after that conversation, and I started to bounce a bit in my seat. Ganondorf watched me bobble up and down, and started laughing. I got embarrassed, and blushed. Even with all the powder on my face, I could tell it was visible.

_Ooh! Sanctuary! _I saw a small vase in one of the windows. I got up and ran to it. I picked it up, spun around on my heel, threw it to Ganondorf and said, "Think fast!"

I was acting so childish. But I was happy! I haven't been happy in a long time, and refused to let this opportunity pass me by.

He moved about violently in his seat, and caught it before it hit him in the face. I almost fell over, his spasm made me laugh so hard. Until I saw it fly back at me. I caught it in my left hand before it flew out the window. I looked back at him, my expression one of accomplishment.

"Good job." He sat down on the floor a few feet away. I sat in front of the window, and we started to throw it back and forth to each other.

"So this is what royalty does all day, right?" I said.

"On days like these...yes. And these days come along sporadically, thank Din."

"Why thank Din? I think this is kind of fun."

"That's because you've never dropped things down onto the guards."

"What do you mean?" I caught the vase, but didn't throw it back.

He motioned for me to follow him after he stood up. I was hesitant about this, but I stood up anyway. I put the vase gently back on the windowsill to avoid any loud noise, and followed Ganondorf out of the door to our left and through a part of the fortress I wasn't familiar with. We snuck past all of the girls patrolling, something I actually had to help him with, his armor being so loud, and got up to the prison cell deck. Ganondorf picked up a piece of stray wood from the crate in the corner, about and inch thick, and chucked it at a guard down below.

"Get down!" He grabbed my arm and pulled me down to the floor.

"What the hell?!" Yelled a guard. "That was my eye!"

We both burst out laughing, as quietly as we could manage. I started to roll around I found it so funny, and my face was bright red again. That made us both crack up all over again. I got up and pulled another piece from the crate and chucked it at the guards looking around for the source of the mysterious assault. I ducked, and Ganondorf looked over the ledge. It hit another girl in the back. She screamed so loud it echoed off of the walls. We were both tearing up from laughter in about thirty seconds. I almost rolled straight down into the prisoners cell once, which made us laugh even harder. I was suddenly extremely happy to have met Ganondorf. I did something that neither of us expected. I stood up and sprinted back into the Fortress, and yelled, "Race you!"

"Cheater!" Ganondorf said as he got up and started after me. He passed me within three seconds.

"Not fair!" Every guard was looking at us as we ran by. They couldn't even get a good look we were going so fast. All they must have seen was a blue and black blur whiz by.

By the time I made it to the throne room I was panting and laughing at the same time, and Ganondorf was waiting for me as calm as can be by the thrones.

"How...Did...You...Do that?!" I panted.

He laughed at that, "I'm a boy."

I just fell down on the floor with a thud and started a tired laughing fit. I couldn't believe I was so comfortable with Ganondorf, after thinking he was horrible one day and my friend the next. My mother once told me that true friendship took years to build, but not this one. It was like we had been friends for years, but we had just met two days ago. He was actually really sweet. Then my head started up: Maybe I only felt this way because I haven't had a friend since I was nine years old. But my heart told me differently.

He started laughing at me again. He came over to me and sat next to me and fell over as well. Seeing somebody who usually acts so mature act like a little kid cracked me up. I had once feared him so much; I thought he was evil, I thought he wasn't a good person. That's only because I never saw him as what he really was: a human being. A nice, fun human being. I was the happiest I had ever been in my life because of him, and I loved him for it.

So I hugged him. And he did not expect that to happen at all; I could tell. But he hugged me back anyway. I will always remember that day. I made my first real friend. And with the least friendly seeming person alive! I thought it was something like a miracle, for somebody as sarcastic, tactless, and bitchy as me, and somebody that appeared so harsh and cruel, to make a friend. I didn't even care that my stomach hurt from laughing or that I was having trouble breathing. I was _happy._I couldn't remember being happy since I was nine years old. The Goddesses had blessed me. And I will never forget that.

"So, you _are_ happy I chose you now," he said after pulling away.

I blushed again. I didn't want to say it, something about it seemed to be a lie. I didn't want to lie to him anymore.

"You are. I can see right past your blushing." He laughed when he saw me turn even redder at his accusatory remark. "You blush a lot, you know that?"

"If by 'A lot', you mean that I've been blushing very much lately, then yes. You're right." I tried to relax, but I started laughing. It was partly from embarrassment, and partly from happiness.

My moment was spoiled again by my annoyingly shrewd mind: He wasn't genuine, this has all happened much to quickly, it told me. But my compassionate heart said that he was as in need of a friend as I was. I decided to listen to my heart, for the first time in years.


	5. Chapter 5

I was starting to form friendships with everybody I saw throughout the day. I was closest to Lati and Ival, though. We spent more time talking than usual now. I was loving my new life! I had real food, a place to live, and _friends. _I don't think the girls here take friendship as seriously as it is. It's a precious thing to have, and I was blessed. They never appreciate things that could be so easily taken away.

The next afternoon, I was sent to dance lessons. What a pain they were! As the new unofficial 'Queen' of the Gerudo, it was customary that I knew how to dance for the holiday coming up, the day the Goddesses created Hyrule. It was the first day of each new year that it was celebrated. I was hating it already. I was supposed to dance in front of a bunch of drunk girls, so at least it wouldn't hurt their feelings if I did horribly. Even the little girls could have wine! They would probably think I did well. Plus, it was held at midnight around a small, dim fire, so it couldn't be too bad. The whole night was basically a big mess of drunk girls. Still, the dance was incredibly difficult, and dancing brings back bad memories...It was all about keeping my arms perfectly still while moving my hips, keeping one arm still while the other moved, and so on. I had a total of three weeks to learn it, but by the looks of today, three weeks is a bit too few.

I had extra time after the lesson. Since Ganondorf was busy going to Hyrule, and Mita was boring me with her talk about the horse that had been mal-nourished months back (_oops_...), I decided to explore the bathroom adjoined to my bed chamber. I never really went inside for more than a few seconds. I walked with Mita up all the stairs. I was beginning to memorize the way, how many steps: about seventy four. Once upstairs, Mita finally asked, "What did we come to your bed chamber for, Miss?"

"I want to explore the room with the tub." I opened the door and walked inside, leaving it open for Mita. She followed me in and pushed drapery away from a small window I hadn't noticed before, and sunlight came rushing into the room. The window was high up on the wall, very close to the ceiling, and it stretched from one side of the wall to the other.

After I scrubbed the dirt off of my body, Mita helped me comb the rest of the lice out of my hair, "like the plague" as she recalled.

I was still trying to dry my hair, which was a chore because of it's length, when Mita came back from bringing me new clothes to tell me to get to the throne room immediately. As soon as I got there, Ganondorf was waiting for me. He looked like something serious was about to happen.

"Nabooru, something terrible has happened."

I suddenly became alarmed, although I had expected it from the start. "What is it?"

"I saw you at dance practice!" Ganondorf tried to keep a straight face but failed miserably.

"Shut up!" I smacked his arm as hard as I could, but he couldn't stop laughing. "It was my first day! You should try it, I would love to see you dance like that and look good."

"You would, would you?"

"You know what I meant." I had to laugh to prevent from blushing...again. With no powder on my face, I would probably scare him from the discoloration.

"You did well for your first day," He said, but I saw his face start to turn to a smile when he put his arms around me.

"Sure. At least I have three weeks. How drunk do you plan to get that day, exactly?" I asked.

He laughed. "Hopefully not as bad as last year. I couldn't walk properly."

"Well then, _my _performance won't be the spectacle of the night. How nice!" I said. I ducked out from under his arms and started twirling around only to fall on my behind. Of course. I hid my face in my hands and laughed away the embarrassment. My face was probably the color of my hair. Ganondorf must have thought that was the greatest thing that could have happened at the moment, because he couldn't even manage to laugh at me. He just walked away shaking his head. He came back into the room to me lying on the ground in hysterics. I never found anything this funny unless I was with him. And I know he found almost nothing funny without me. We were kind of like each others sense of humor. Without each other, we would be lost.

"...Alright," I started laughing again, after finaly regaining my composure. I felt like we were four years old. But that's what I loved about having a friend. I could act like a stupid little kid and not care. And neither would he. Times like these remind me what I'm still around here for.

**Time jump! WHOO! Three weeks later, for sheer lack of anything decent to fill the gap with :**

Tonight was the night. I had to perform in front of the entire Gerudo race. I didn't think I was ready at all. I was so nervous I started to shake. I had less than an hour to midnight, and I was ready to throw up. Everything was spinning. I had practiced the dance every single day for the past three weeks, but I still thought something would go terribly wrong.

I had to get a special outfit for the dance. It was all gold, to symbolize the flaming arms of Din and the burning sun of our beloved desert. It was almost exactly the same as my others, but this had twice as much goo and jewelry attached. I looked beautiful, but I found it hard to walk around in all of this heavy stuff. I got the hang of it only as I was walking up the hill to the stables to help light the ceremonial fire. I felt like something in my stomach was jumping around, and all I wanted was for it to fall over and die.

All I could remember was the song I had to dance to. It was called Gerudo Valley for a reason. It was the traditional hymn of our race. It was fast, too, so I had to learn to move accurately _and_ quickly at the same time. I found out within one day of practice I was not much of a dancer.

It was now a few minutes to midnight, and I was curled up in a ball in a dark corner far away from the drunk crowd. Every girl was on her third glass of wine _at least. _I was contemplating running to some random girl and drinking her wine to calm down, but I couldn't get up. I just sat up, and rocked back and forth. I couldn't believe I was so nervous. Who cares what they think? They're all drunk anyways. Mita and I are the only people here who aren't. _Fuck, I'm outnumbered!_ That just added to my nerves.

Mita found me at last.

"Nabooru, it's almost midnight."

_Meehhh..._

"I'm coming." I said. I got up and walked out to the fire like nothing was wrong.

"Let's go Nabooru!" some little girl yelled, and then everyone started cheering. _Oh shit, they're all still sober enough to know who I am!_

The notes to open the song started up: #C, D, #G, D, #F, A, F, #G, B, #C...

I started to dance and everybody cheered. I could hardly hear the music they were so loud. At least I kept the song's rhythm in my head. Thank Din the song was fast. I was done quickly, and everybody seemed to have enjoyed the unmarred performance. I curtsied, and when I looked up I heard Ganondorf yelling "Yeah, Nabooru!" as he stumbled over a rock. I fought back the laughter only to a point; I was biting my lip so hard that I cut it. By the time I got to him, I was so embarrassed that I just took his wine from him and drank it all.

"Thirsty?" He said as he finally gathered himself and stood up.

"Yes I am." I turned the goblet upside down and shook it. No more, so I went to get some. After refilling it to the brim, I slowly walked back to Ganondorf, never taking it away from my lips.

"Have you ever even had alcohol before?" He asked me as I gulped another two sips. I didn't like the taste much.

"No," I said, wiping my lips. "I just know that it makes people happy."

"Why do you need _alcohol _to be happy? You did great!"

I just looked at him and took another sip. "Well, I know I liked it," He tried. I just kept drinking.

"Moderation," He said, taking the wine from me and holding it above his head. I tried to get it but it was too high, so I jumped up and down grabbing at it.

"You're going to be upset tomorrow if you keep that up."

"And why is that?" I stopped jumping to leer at him.

"Alcohol has another effect than happiness."

"Such as?" I jumped up again. He had to take a step back because I almost got it from him.

"A very miserable morning after."

"I don't care, just give it back."

"Don't drink it all at once. Pace yourself." He slowly handed it back. I drank it down in three big gulps.

"Fine, don't listen. We'll just see what you think about my advice tomorrow."

"I'll be fine, I can handle it."

"Promise?" He countered. He probably did know better, but I was way too stubborn to admit it. Even my head said to try to tone it down, but my heart told me to drink my way to happiness.

"I promise you that I can handle it."

About a half hour later, I was still getting compliments on my dance from girls I didn't know.

"Really Nabooru, you were spectacular," slurred a girl with all of her friends agreeing behind her.

"Thank you," I said as she fell over, and I sprinted back over to Ganondorf from the wine barrels. I almost tripped once.

"Save me." I sat down next to him on the ground. He was next to Mita and a noble named Hysam. They both got up and said they would refill their goblets, but once they were by the barrels, they got caught up in a duel between Hysam's cousin and another girl I didn't recognize.

"From her?" Ganondorf pointed to the girl who was being supported by her friends and chuckled. She was slowly falling to the ground despite her friend's best efforts to keep her standing.

"From all of what just happened." I fell back and looked up at the full moon above the happy crowd. Ganondorf looked at me, and then fell back too. I laughed. I only meant to laugh a little but it came out very loud and uncontrollable, which made me laugh more. Before I knew it I was rolling around in the sand in hysterics, my face as red as ever.

"I told you not to drink so much," Ganondorf laughed at me wiping my eyes carefully to avoid ruining my special goo.

"Since when is this a contest?" I asked.

"What are you talking about?" Ganondorf sat up and looked back at me.

"I bet I can drink more than you can!" I said, sitting up quickly. Ganondorf gave me another look.

"Are you sure?" He asked, trying not to smile.

"Yes! I can drink more than you and walk fine, you'll see."

"Okay, it's on." _Ha! He's too drunk to say no. I can win, he's already close to loosing! _

That was probably the worst thing that I could have suggested, because after finishing one more glass in three sips I was falling over my own feet. Ganondorf took much pride in winning the contest.

"That's not fair, you cheated!" I yelled at him from the pathetic heap I was in on the ground. All he did was laugh.

"I didn't cheat, I'm just bigger than you are." He helped me up and I swayed in place.

"You're not_ that_ much bigger than me," I insisted. "Watch, I can pick you up if I tried."

I wrapped my arms around his torso and tried to lift him. He started laughing and stopped me. "Don't hurt yourself, Nabooru," He said. I knew it would take much more than a few drinks to get him drunk, but he'd already had at least five. I couldn't believe that he could hold his composure for so long. It was infuriating and admirable at the same time.

"Well if your so big, then _you_ lift _me_. Come on, let's go, tough guy. I bet you couldn't get me an inch off the ground, I'm so fat." A sure sign that I had been too concerned about my appearance after all these days.

"Alright." He picked me up with one arm, and very little effort. "What are you, ninety-five pounds?"

"I think its one hundred-five." I was flailing my arms and legs, and my hair was flying everywhere. "Is it just me, or is everything smaller up here?" I asked, looking around.

He laughed and put me back down. I fell, and cracked up all over again. I was having so much fun I didn't even notice that almost everybody else was asleep around the fire. I was just looking at Ganondorf who was swaying a little too. He was so drunk, but he pulled it all together just long enough to carry me back to the Fortress. He almost dropped me a few times and tripped once, but other than that I enjoyed the ride. I liked to feel taller.

"Okay, put me down," I said as we entered the Fortress. "I can walk from here." As soon as I was done saying that, I tripped onto the ground.

"Ouch." My voice was muffled by the floor.

"Are you alright?" Ganondorf asked, helping me up. "Really, it's fine, I can carry you to your room."

"I got it, it's okay," I said. But he already picked me up again anyway. I didn't object. We were almost at the end of the hallway when he tripped.

"Nooo!" He said, and we both ended up on the ground. Neither of us were fit to walk. We just sat there laughing for a good five minutes. Mita came in after us.

"Do you need any help?" She slurred. Even Mita was drunk! _I love this holiday! That just made my night!_

"No, we're fine, thank you Sushmita." Ganondorf said. He got up and fell over again. This time he landed on his face like I did before.

"Ooh." I crawled over to him as Mita stumbled away. "Are you okay?"

He rolled over and sat up. "Ugh...Yeah," he said. He had a bump on his forehead. I put my hand up to his face check it out. "You're going to have a bruise tomorrow." I said while sympathetically brushing hair away from his eyes. Suddenly he grabbed my hand. "What...?" I asked. He didn't answer.

He just kissed me.

_...Whoa...What?! _Was all I could think. I _really_ didn't expect that to happen.

I didn't think a lot of things would happen, but as fate would have it...They all did, and in one night.


	6. Chapter 6

I woke up the next morning with a throbbing head and a sore neck. I was on my stomach with one arm over the side of the bed, and half of my limbs were asleep and tingling. I looked around and realized that I wasn't in my bed chamber. I was in an elaborately decorated room on a huge bed. I had no clue where I was or how I ended up here. I lifted my head and looked around a little bit more. I had to shift my body to not hurt my neck, and felt an unusual movement on my arm. I looked down to where my pillow should be, and what I found was Ganondorf. _I am on top of him?_ I got a chill and wondered why. I soon realized neither of us had clothes on.

_Uh..._

I just looked back at Ganondorf, staring until I tried to think. I remembered how drunk I was last night...And then, after a while of pondering, I remembered the kiss. Strangely, I didn't find it that horrible. I remembered liking it. I tried my hardest to remember what else happened. I remembered that we went to his room, and how I felt like I shouldn't be doing what I was doing until I got there. _What else...? _I looked out the window, and saw the sun rising. _Fuck._

I slowly got up off of Ganondorf without waking him up. I grabbed a spare blanket from the foot of the bed and lightly walked to the door with it wrapped around me. I opened the door and shut it behind me quietly, and bolted to my room. If I ran down the hall fast enough I might make it before Mita came to wake me.

"Nabooru?!"

_...Ach. Of course._

"Did you just come from King Ganondorf's bed chambers?"

"Uh..."

"You...are you wearing any..." She gasped. "Nabooru! You didn't!" Mita's eyes were bulging out.

"I don-"

"That's impossible! I don't believe this!" My headache was getting worse with every word she yelled.

"Mita, stop yelling-"

"This is unbelievable! Do you know what this mea-"

I covered her mouth with my hand and dragged her into my room, despite her muffled rant. I shut the door and locked it. I spun around to see Mita bouncing up and down on her toes.

"Nabooru! This is...Insane...I can't even tell you what will happen if-"

"Mita, please!" I said, covering my ears. "Stop shouting." Wasn't she in pain from the alcohol too? I saw her last night, she was drunk. _Ha-Ha!...Wait, Nabooru, focus..._

"I can't believe you slept with him, Nabooru!" She exclaimed in a hushed tone.

"We don't know that I did for sure yet," I said, finally looking her in the eyes.

"How can you _not know_?!" Mita was pacing now. I think she was more freaked out than I was. I was almost starting to accept it, when something inside snapped me from my phase of comfort and acceptance. _Did I really?! Shit..._

"Is he awake?"

"I don't think so," I said, adjusting the blanket. What I meant was, _"I hope not."_

"Oh good Din. You're still a child! This is...unbelievable!" Mita was leaning against the door while I sat on my bed massaging my temples and staring at the floor. _I'm never drinking again._

"Come with me, you need clothes."

"Don't say a word about this to anybody until I know for sure what happened, alright?" She exhaled loudly, but didn't answer. I stood up and followed her to the dressing room.

A few hours later I was sent to the throne room where I knew he would be waiting. I thought to leave and go rob some of the pathetic townspeople in Hyrule Market, but didn't want to have to do this later.

My throat was dry by the time I reached the throne room. _Just relax, Nabooru...Calm yourself._

Ganondorf looked up at me from across the room, then looked back down. I sighed quietly and walked over to him.

"When did you wake up?" I asked him, incapable of finding a better thing to say.

"Right when you left," He said. He looked at me, an expression I've never seen on him before completely obvious. He seemed ashamed.

"I don't really remember anything..." I lied. I didn't even look at him this time. It was too awkward, and I couldn't just block this one out.

"I do..."

_TELL ME! SAY SOMETHING! PLEASE!_

"What happened?" I said, as calm as possible. My heart was beating so quickly that the blood rushed to my head, and made it appear that I was blushing.

"I don't know if it's as bad as you think." he said at seeing my flushed face. "We only-"

"Yeah," I said, looking up at him. I didn't want to know the details after all. Just those two words were enough to make me uncomfortable. I knew that if I heard it all without the memory, I would freak out. He looked at me, and we just stared at each other for a while. I waited for him to do something, but he must have been waiting for me to say something. He looked as embarrassed as I was. I was still blushing. I couldn't handle this! It was too messed up. _Why couldn't I remember anything?_

"I'm so sorry Nabooru, I wasn't trying to-"

"Don't be sorry." W_hat?_

"...Wait...What?" He looked a bit confused, like he expected me to start screaming and punching him.

I didn't say anything. I just stood on my tip-toes and kissed him.

_Am I possessed right now?! What in Farore's green Hyrule is going on?! I can't be doing this! I just can't..._Even while I thought these things, I kept doing what I was doing. My head was screaming at me to stop, but my heart was saying _go ahead_. And who did I listen to?

I put my hand on his shoulder, and he gingerly put his hands around my waist. I almost laughed because he was trying not to do anything.

I was enjoying the moment until I heard footsteps behind me. I whipped my head around so fast, I almost broke my sore neck.

Mita was standing in the door, a big grin forming across her thin lips.

"Uh.." I said, without thinking. My hand was still on his shoulder, and he still had his hands on my waist. We both jumped away from each other after we finally realized that Mita was here.

I only heard a little squeal from Mita.

"I can't believe it!" Mita's smile was so big her cheeks were almost covering her eyes. She was _happy_?

"What?" Ganondorf and I said at the same exact time.

"That's so cute!" She was almost crying she was so happy. Maybe the news finally caught up to her.

"Uh...Sushmita, don't-" Ganondorf said, backing up inch by inch as Mita came running for a group hug. It didn't stop her massive attack on the both of us.

"I'm so happy for you!" Mita was glowing. I thought she meant something bad would happen if people found out about this. _Maybe this had been anticipated?_

"Really?" I said.

"Of course! I have to go! Right now. As you were!" She ran off and probably was heading to the guards to tell them the news. Judging by her saying, "Cantera! Amanti! You'll never guess what happened!", and running frantically down the hallway, it was a good bet.

I looked back at Ganondorf. He looked at me. We both smiled. Then we both laughed, half of relief and half of Mita's crazy reaction. Pretty soon we were laughing only about relief. I was glad we at least didn't have to hide it anymore. I didn't even know about it until two minutes ago! But I liked it. And I know he did too, because he kissed me again. And I liked that even more.

I managed to escape my duties for the day to be alone. The first thing I did was head to the Spirit Temple. I hadn't been there in so long! I almost forgot how to cross the Haunted Wasteland without a rope. But once I was there, I was so relieved. My job was starting to be more tedious: Ganondorf was busy with personal business in Hyrule that I didn't bother questioning, so I had to handle all of the politics. The studying alone was bad. Then, I had to travel all across Hyrule, mostly to Hyrule Castle to meet with the Queen for an attempted compromise. Of course, all of this was undercover. If the Hylian King knew about it he would abolish the matter immediately.

What a relief it was to see the Temple again. I felt like a guardian, since I was the only person other than Ganondorf who dared to enter it in years. I knew the Spirit Temple even _better _than the back of my hand. Seriously, I don't stare at my hand all day. I'm not _that _weird. I liked being alone when I was there. Otherwise I felt horrible about everything. This was the first time I had been to the Temple since I was appointed as Ganondorf's second in command. Everything was exactly the same. The only thing different was that I didn't feel alone. I felt like I was in the presence of something bad, almost evil. After I made it to the top of the Colossus, I felt better. I took off my big black cloak, which made my journey so much easier since I wasn't getting cut up by sand flying around. I put it next to my feet and sat down. I looked at the desert laid out in front of me, and was instantly touched by the endless sands gleaming in the sunset. They were reflecting gold and orange beams into the pink and blue and yellow sky. The sun was slowly disappearing, getting stronger in my eyes the lower it got in the sky.

Something blew my hair from my back and over my shoulders. I whipped my head around, but nothing was there with me. I suddenly saw the sky go dark. I turned back around; the sun was gone and the moon had come. Desert nights were just as beautiful as days. The stars were bright and the wind was strong. It made me think how powerful such little things can be. If a small breeze made me feel so inspired, I could do anything I wanted. Being here lifted my spirit so much that I almost always wanted to cry. From happiness, of course. That is, until I felt something clamp onto my shoulder.

I turned around slowly in fear of what it was. I saw nothing, but it felt like a bird had landed on my shoulder and dug its talons into my skin. Whatever it was was trying to pull me closer to it. I got a chill and stood up quickly. I felt my shoulder return to normal, and a huge gust of wind came from behind me. The wind in my ear seemed to sound more like a high pitched cackle than just wind. Whatever it was, it was gone. I decided to head back to the Fortress since I was too freaked out to stay, no matter how hard it was to admit. I swooped up my things and started climbing back down the side of the Spirit Temple. I jumped from a small ledge onto the Sand Goddess's' hand, outstretched to welcome anyone who dared enter the temple. Namely, me. I never noticed that there was an entry way into the temple up here before. I peered inside. It was too dark to see anything. Then out of nowhere, two pairs of eyes: one pair fiery red and the other icy blue, appeared in the darkness. I backed up one step. The eyes were glaring at me, seeming to say, _Leave_. A huge gust of wind came from their direction and knocked me off my feet. I was quick enough to grab the edge of the hand. I was wrenching my shoulders and back from the odd position I was in. Once I was steady, I dropped the rest of the way down, landing on my feet and hurting my legs. I stayed crouched until I felt my arm get unnaturally cold. I stood up and the cold came to a thin layer of ice spreading across my right arm. I looked at it in shock and was interrupted by my other arm being scorched. It burst into a small, quick flame and was red from being burnt. My other arm was still a shade of purple from the cold. I looked around in horror and shock.

The wind started pushing me back. I took a step behind me, turned and ran back to the Haunted Wasteland. Before I left the Colossus, I turned back around and looked at the Spirit Temple once more. It was gone. The place I had come to love was engulfed in a dark black, almost green aura. The wind came stronger against me, and I turned back to the Haunted Wasteland. I ran the whole way back.

As soon as I returned, I took off my cloak and looked at my arms. They were better, still a bit discolored, but better. My legs hurt so badly that I just sat down where I was and shook out my cloak. I was scolding myself for being such a wimp about the pain. I was never going back to the Spirit Temple, as much as it pained me to imagine. I loved it there. But it had fallen to something evil.

I made my way to the throne room. I saw Ganondorf walk in from the opposite door.

"Nabooru, where were you all day?" He asked, coming over.

"I was robbing some men in the Market Place." _Liar._ But I didn't want to tell him the truth.

He laughed. "Spoken like a true Gerudo." He leaned in and kissed me. I didn't even notice until a second in that it had happened, I was so distracted. But when I did I kissed him back, more than grateful for love. I was still in pain and just lost something I felt I needed to protect. I had let it down, and neglected my responsibilities. I needed all the distractions I could get.

"I have to ask you something." I said.

"What is it?"

"Have you been to the Desert Colossus lately?"

He looked around. "Why?"

"Well, have you been there?"

"Yes ... I went there a few days ago while you were with the Hylian Queen."

"What did you do there?"

"I just looked around for any trouble. I don't stay long."

"And you didn't find anything strange?" I didn't even know why I asked. I don't want to know. _Wait, why wouldn't he send somebody to look for him? Wasn't he busy?_

"No, nothing seemed different to me."

"Oh. Okay then!" I said, and kissed him again. I didn't want to talk about that place anymore. I wanted to banish it from my memory. I only wanted happy things to happen tonight.

After a few hours of actually robbing the pathetic men in Hyrule Market, I returned home. My horse was the fastest one in the stables, and seemed to take a lot of pride in the fact that she could outrun sprinting Hylian men. We were a good team. She was fast and I was ruthless. I got at least five men to hand over more than what I asked for. I was taking out all of my aggression on these fools, and they would do as I say. I did feel bad for their wives and daughters, though. Little girls want to see their fathers as brave and powerful, not the weak idiots they actually were. I never met my father, but he was a Hylian. I wanted desperately to know him, but after robbing a few of these men, I had a good idea of what he was like. So I let go of that idea when I was still very young. It didn't bother me. I was my own hero. I depended on nobody for my safety but myself, the only reliable source I ever knew. My mother was very sick, since I was three years old. I was raised by my cousin, Aveil, until I was almost five, and she left for home in Termina again. My mother was never was able to leave home. So I depended on my wits, strength, and and her advice for my entire life.

I was riding back home when I saw some stupid little kid with a fairy fighting a stalchild across Hyrule Field. I laughed to myself and shot an arrow straight into it's fat, ugly head, and it collapsed in a heap of bones. I sped off before the kid could see me, and right into Gerudo Valley once again.

I was brushing my horse and feeding it when Mita came into the stables.

"Nabooru?"

"Yeeeeeeah..." I said lazily. I was really tired, after only getting a few hours of sleep, waking up in pain, and then losing the Spirit Temple.

"I need to bring you to the Desert Colossus." Mita said as bravely as she could. _Did she know?_

I stopped brushing my horse and looked at her. "...What?!"

"I have special orders from King Ganondorf to take you there."

"Why do I need to go?" I wasn't going. Hell no, not after what happened today. _Never again_.

"He wouldn't tell me. He was acting very strange when he told me, though. He...He wasn't acting like himself."

So much for banishing it from my memory. "Uh...Is it mandatory?" I was stalling as best I could. I could probably outrun her. I just needed a distraction.

"Yes."

"Ahh, what the hell is that thing?!" I pointed behind Mita.

"You're going, Nabooru."

"Damn..." I dropped the brush and shuffled out after her. I was getting more nervous with every step. I looked down at my arms. The looked fine, but they still hurt. Same as my legs. I didn't enjoy the long walk at all.

"Why do you need to bring me?" I asked.

"Because you wouldn't have gone unless I dragged you here."

I walked up to the Colossus, crossed my arms, and kicked at the sand. "Okay, we're here. Now what?"

"Follow me." Mita began walking around the right side of The Spirit Temple. I quickly followed. I was grateful that I wasn't alone, although I wasn't sure of how much help Mita would be if something happened. For all I know, she wasn't very strong.

I never noticed that there was a different building just behind the Spirit Temple. It was almost identical, but it didn't have the Sand Goddess or the tremendous size. This one was surrounded by some sort of smoke, something I had to ask Mita about. She said it was called fog. I had never seen anything of the sort. There was fog flying around my legs, and I was coughing from it. This place creeped me out worse than the actual Spirit Temple. It was dark inside, except for one torch that Mita picked up and carried with her. I could hear whispering coming from a room behind a large, dusty door. It sounded like a woman bickering with herself.

_Yeah, I feel safe now._

Mita knocked on the door and the bickering stopped.

"We're here," she called to the door.

It rolled up in a split second, and we walked into a room with about ten torches along the walls, dusty rugs all over the ground, and tons of potions on shelves in the back. The door fell shut with a low boom and kicked up more dust. I looked around, and Mita put the torch on the empty holder on the wall by my head. I didn't like it here at all.

"Stay here, I'll be right back." She walked behind a dark blue and red curtain next to the potion shelves. I heard more bickering. None of it was Mita. It was all from one voice. And what an annoying voice it was.

Mita came out from behind the curtain with two women. They were very old looking, older than I had ever seen, with big, yellow bug eyes. The had their white hair tied up in cloth, and had big black Ancient Gerudo robes on. They had gems on their forehead, one with a red gem and one with a blue gem. They looked at me and cackled. I felt like I had heard it before.

"You must be Nabooru!" The one with the red gem on her forehead exclaimed in her squawky voice.

"Uh...Yes." I half smiled, trying to be polite.

"What a beautiful girl!" She said.

"Yes, very beautiful!" The one with the blue gem agreed in the exact same voice. "Where are our manners? I am Kotake, and this is my twin sister, Koume."

"You are in good hands, little girl!" Koume said, putting her bony hands on my shoulders. That made me even more nervous.

"Yes, follow us, dear." Kotake said, rushing behind the curtain. I looked back at Mita as Koume led me into a small room with a mat on the ground.

"Go ahead and lie down here, we will be right back." Kotake said, rushing back out. I heard her talking to Mita, telling her to head back home without me. _Mita...Send backup!_

"You will be with your friend in a matter of moments, dear." Kotake came back inside with a handful of different potions.

"Don't worry, you will be good as new when we take care of you!" Koume cackled.

"What needs to be taken care of? I feel fine," I said, looking from Koume to Kotake and back again.

"We were told by the King that you were very ill and needed to be healed." Kotake set the potions on a table by my head. "Now lie down, and it will be over before you know it."

_Why did he say I was sick? What will be over before I know it? _Before I could think anything else, Koume was checking the backs of my hands and my arms.

"Why are your arms hurting, little girl?" She asked, a smile forming on her wrinkled, green tinted face. She looked at Kotake out of the corner of her eyes and cackled with her.

"How did you know my arms hurt?" I asked, raising my eyebrows skeptically.

Koume and Kotake looked at each other, then at me. "You just told us, dear," Kotake said sweetly.

"I did?" I asked while lowering myself onto the mat. _Maybe I am sick._

"Now eat these, sweety," Koume said, handing me bluish, spiny leaves. I slowly put them in my mouth. They tasted like the copper coins I found in the Market Place. As they bustled about the small room, mixing potions and stirring them to make a big black mix, I chewed and swallowed the leaves.

"Good! Now, we need you to drink this as quickly as you can," Kotake said, handing me the bottle with the black potion inside.

"It won't taste good," Koume sounded another audible cackle.

I gulped it down, and she was right, it tasted terrible. I started coughing, and my throat turned dry. My head was throbbing like it had been this morning, and the room was getting blurry.

"How should we do it, Kotake?" I heard Koume say, right before everything turned black.


	7. Chapter 7

When I opened my eyes, I was lying in the middle of the Haunted Wasteland. I had no idea on how I ended up there. My clothes were almost completely ripped up, and the last thing I remembered was that Mita and I were walking to the Spirit Temple. She must be looking around for me. It was still dark out, so I figured I hadn't been lying here for long. I stood up, but everything went blurry. My head felt like it had swelled up, and I fell over. Everything seemed to be shaking, and there was ringing in my ears.

_I hope nobody is watching, otherwise this is really embarrassing. Am I drunk again?! What's wrong with me?_

The wind started to pick up, and sand was flying everywhere. I just sat there with my eyes closed tight, waiting for it to pass. After a while, I just stood up and wobbled forward. My stomach was hurting too, and I felt like I was about to throw up. I was in the middle of the endless desert, and the usual leading flags that the Ancient Gerudos had put up were nowhere in sight.

_How am I going to get back?_

I was so upset that I felt my face start to turn red. I stood up despite my blurry vision and all of the pain and I walked forward, against the wind. The last time it blew this hard, it was keeping me away from the Spirit Temple. Maybe I would end up there.

I walked for what felt like hours, and must have gone in circles, because I was unable to walk in the same direction for more than three steps. I would lean to the left or right. I still couldn't see the flags. I didn't even know if I was walking to them or even farther away from them. All in my life, I had never dared to venture of the path. I just sat down, and fell onto my back. I looked up at the moon. It was a small crescent. My mother told me to always trust my instincts in dire situations, and I haven't been lately. I decided just to sit and listen to anything that would make a sound. All I could hear was the strong wind echoing in my ears. My hair was almost completely out of its ponytail, and I had to constantly pull it away from my face. I was starting to wonder how long I had been out here when I heard a faint scream in the distance. I turned my head around, and looked for who it was. I stood up and looked around. I was starting to get scared. I had no idea whether it was a ghost of some girl that died out here or not. I heard it again. It came from my right, so I started off blindly in that direction. I didn't much care who was screaming or why, I just knew that this girl had a better chance of being close to the Fortress than I did.

_Wow,_ I thought,_ that's actually pretty heartless. _

I heard it again, but much louder this time. I was close.

"Get away from me!" I heard the girl scream. She was at least within the surrounding twenty feet.

"Hello?" I said quietly.

"Help!" She screamed. I stopped walking, and gasped.

I started running toward her. "Mita?"

"Nabooru? Where are you?!"

I pulled out my old rusty scimitar from my hip. The wind shifted away from me, and I saw Mita walking around. She looked frantic, as usual, but now she looked a bit _too_ frantic.

"Mita," I ran over to her. "What is it? What are you doing out here?"

She looked at me, and looked instantly relieved. She looked disheveled, with scrapes all over her arms and her hair in her face.

"There's something out here, Nabooru," she panted. "We need to go."

"How do we get back?"

"I don't know, but we need to get away from those hags." I had absolutely no idea on how to get back home, but if there is something dangerous out here, I'm leaving.

"What hags?" I asked, motioning for her to follow me.

"Koume and Kotake!" She said.

"Who are they?"

"What do you mean, 'Who are they?', you just met them a few minutes ago!"

I stopped walking and turned to face her. "No, I didn't."

"Yes, you did, remember? The old hags that treated you by the Desert Colossus?" The wind was dying down a bit now.

"What the hell are you talking about?"

She looked completely serious. "You really don't remember?"

"I didn't see them, so how could I possibly remember them? I have no idea what you're talking about!" I yelled. I was getting so upset after being stuck here in the desert for so long, with no water, and now Mita telling me about something that happened that I can't remember was taking it's toll on me.

Suddenly, I heard a loud, high pitched cackle. It came from all around, so I didn't know what to do other than pull out my scimitar. In a flash, the wind picked up harder, and Mita was gone. I started running to where she was, and I ended up back at the Fortress. I looked around, confused. Everything was completely normal.

I ran to the throne room, but it was empty. I came back outside and saw that the sun was starting to rise. It was colder out than it had been in the Haunted Wasteland, and the air felt dewy. I hated it. I folded my arms, and dug my fingernails into my skin.

"Do you know where Ganondorf is?" I asked one of the guards on patrol through my teeth. I was so angry from everything that had just happened, I had to try not to hit her in the face.

"I think he is at the Spirit Temple, Miss Nabooru." She looked confused at my frazzled and raggedy appearance.

"Thanks." I started heading back to the Haunted Wasteland. Nothing could stop me now; I needed to find Mita. As I walked, I began gathering my hair into an unkempt ponytail. I picked up my pace until I was walking at jogging speed, and clasped the jewel back around my hair. Then I began to run. I ran at top speed, despite all of the pain. I crossed all of the obstacles in an urgent manner. _Mita must matter a lot to me for me to go back there for her_.

What can I say? That's friendship.

The Temple had a very ominous vibe. I hadn't entered it since this evening, and I thought I wasn't coming back.

_Oh, well. Just suck it up, Nabooru, you little baby._

I looked up and down for Ganondorf and Mita, but no luck was granted. I didn't even like being here thinking it was haunted; the last thing I wanted to do was stay. I walked back outside into the sun, and had to cover my eyes. My head was still hurting, but my stomach ache had passed. I was beginning to wonder what all that was about when I heard footsteps behind me.

I turned around and there Mita was, looking like nothing had happened.

"Are you alright? What happened?" I asked, looking at her for any harm. The scrapes she had earlier were gone, and her hair was perfect.

"What do you mean? I just came here looking for you."

_Whaaat?!_

"You were just frantic about leaving and getting back to the Fortress a few minutes ago," I said. "You said that we needed to get away from hags."

"It's obvious that sleep hasn't been faithful to you in the past few days," Mita joked. I just stood there, staring at her. "I'm going to head back now, are you coming?"

"...What..." Was all I could manage. I couldn't even formulate a real response.

Mita walked away with a shrug, full on saunter and everything. I put my hand on my forehead to check for a fever. I was fine. I was getting confused, though. She was screaming for help a while ago, now she's wondering if _I'm_ alright?

I started walking slowly away from the Spirit Temple with my arms crossed tightly, fingernails puncturing my skin once more. I stopped walking to stomp my foot, the most childish gesture I could imagine. Sand spattered up from the angry force.

_I'm not crazy. I know what just happened. I didn't see any hags, or whatever else Mita said. I'm not crazy. I'm not crazy. I'm not crazy. I'm not-_

More footsteps interrupted my thoughts. I turned around, and saw a tall woman walk out of the Spirit Temple. She was old, I could tell from far away. Her skin was an olive colored tint. Her white hair tied up in two strange looking ponytails, and she had gloves in Gerudo art, like mine. She was wearing two different colored slippers. The gem on her forehead was red on one half and blue on the other. She carried two broomsticks.

_What a strange woman. _

She looked around, saw me staring, and promptly came to say hello and introduce herself.

"You must be Nabooru!" She said in such a perfect voice that almost sounded fake. "I am Twinrova."

"Nice to meet you. Uh, I don't mean to be rude, but how did you know who I was?"

"Everybody knows who you are, dear!" She said, putting her tiny arm around my shoulders. "You're practically royalty now!"

_Alright. Get off of me, you're making me sick. _

"Tell me all about how you went from living in the horse stables to becoming a second in command! I have heard so many different rumors, I can't even get a good idea."

Her arm remained tight around my shoulders as she led me to the Haunted Wasteland. Her long, bony fingers were digging into my shoulder like a bird's talon, and I thought back to this afternoon. That made me even more nervous.

"Well," I cleared my throat as I thought back. "It was only a few weeks ago. I met Ganondorf at the Fortress, and he thought that I was a good fighter, so he chose me as his second in command." I was speaking softer than usual. I hardly even remembered anything, she was making me so uncomfortable.

"And you became instant friends! And now you're in love. I think it's amazing, how quickly it happened."

"Yes, it is." I was almost flinching from her tight grasp. We were only half way through the desert on our way to the Fortress. "You know, my mother-"

"Always told you that friendship took years to build, but you are blessed with an instant connection."

I stopped walking with her. She turned around to face me.

"How did you know that?" I asked curtly.

She hesitated. "I just thought that that was what you would say."

"In my exact words?" I started to reach for my scimitar. She was just too weird.

"Maybe it's a coincidence."

"Or maybe your not telling me something that I should know." I had had enough. I pulled out my scimitar and stepped back on one foot.

"Now, now," She said. "Don't get a temper. You're right; I'm not exactly who I say I am."

"So, who are you, really?" I asked, glaring at her as I twirled my blade around my arm over and over in waiting, and in show.

"You don't need to know just yet."

I felt my face start to get hot. She was on my last nerve, and I was armed and ready. It didn't help that a look of self assurance was plastered onto her wrinkled face.

"And why not?"

"Just follow me." She turned and continued walking to the Fortress.

Without thinking, I took one step back, and lunged sword first at her. I landed on my face with my arm beneath me. I got up quickly and turned to see two different old hags on broomsticks, hovering in the sky. They looked almost the same as Twinrova, but were shorter and uglier. I got ready to attack again when they both cackled. I stopped. I had heard that laugh before. All of a sudden, hundreds of things rushed into my head. Memories from before my mother died, useless things about minuscule happenings, and most important, the night before. I remembered these two. They gave me a drink that made me fall asleep, and I woke up in the desert a few hours ago. I remembered it all.

I felt all of the blood leave my face. I hated that feeling. That was the first thing I felt when I saw my mother's body lying in a lifeless heap beside me with big burns all over her face and back.

"Do you miss you mother, little girl?" The one with the red gem asked. Once she said this I felt like somebody hit me in the face. It wasn't something I was prepared to hear from her.

"We took good care of her, don't you think, Koume?" Squawked the other one.

"Oh yes, I can remember that day as well as two minutes ago."

"You can't remember two minutes ago, don't lie!"

She glared at her with a 'Neither can you,' look. "As I was saying, we found your mommy by herself. You were at the Spirit Temple, even thought you were told not to leave until morning. Without you around to protect your weak little mommy, she was easy to get out of our way. We have been watching you your entire life. We knew since you were born that you would be great trouble to us one day."

I stopped breathing. They killed my mother. These old, ugly hags. They killed my mother!

In a flash, I was in the air slashing at them. I hit Kotake once, only from the momentum of swinging my scimitar back to hit Koume at least three times. They both were squealing when I landed, and once I was turned around, they had already sent blue and red magic beams of light at me. I dogged them as best as I could, but I got hit in my right leg by some sort of ice beam. I couldn't move, despite my best efforts. My leg was covered in ice that was spreading onto the sand and farther up my thigh. Through the cuts in my clothes, I could see ice spreading farther.

"Look at her!" Koume cackled with delight. "Look at her try to get away!"

"How pathetic," said Kotake, shaking her head. She flew down to me, and I slashed at her. I missed, lost my balance and fell onto my left shoulder. I rolled over onto my back only to get hit with another ice beam. I was paralyzed on the ground. I couldn't even move my neck. I just lay there, seething. I wasn't covered in ice, but my skin was turning a pasty blue.

"I'll take that," said Kotake, flying down to take my scimitar. She ripped it from my limp hands. I shut my eyes loosely, preparing for my throat to be slashed, but all I got was another ugly cackle of hers.

"We'll meet again, Nabooru," they said, and took off towards the Spirit Temple.

They were responsible for my mother's death! I was so upset, I didn't bother trying to move. I felt useless. I felt like the only thing left to live for was Ganondorf and Mita. I just looked up at the sun, and wondered how I could have let it happen. I sat there waiting for the feeling in my limbs to return, then slowly sat up. I was having trouble breathing I was so shocked. I was ashamed. It was all my fault.

_I should never have even tried to leave home after dark. I was only nine. I should have protected her. She was sick, she couldn't do it herself. I am to blame._

Even knowing this, I still couldn't cry. I just stood up, brushed myself off, and walked home. The whole way there, I looked absolutely stoic. But inside, I was boiled over with rage. I will get revenge if it is the last thing I'll ever do.


	8. Chapter 8

_Why is all of this happening...Where the hell is Ganondorf?! I hate him so much right now..._

I looked around at the Fortress. All I saw were the guards in morning patrol, wandering a few paces then looking around, and continuing in the opposite direction. I stood in the gateway to the Haunted Wasteland.

_I need to talk to him. Now. _

There was no place I hadn't looked for him. _He wasn't at the Spirit Temple, he isn't here...The only place left is Hyrule. He couldn't be there, though...He was just there last night...What the hell am I supposed to do now?! _I was having trouble standing still, so I decided to walk. I went back to where I used to live, thinking of my mother, and staring at the place on the floor where I found her. I shook the picture from my head, and left. When I walked outside, I stared at the sun. I absentmindedly headed up to the prisoner's cell, and sat perched on the rickety railing. I faced the desert, and stared hopelessly at the two small figures on the horizon. The Spirit Temple, and another smaller building were standing as tall as ever, like they were mocking me. I refused to cry, but that didn't stop me from gritting my teeth in a very cruel manner. At the moment, it was all I could do.

"Oh, hosanna, it is the lesser of two evils," I muttered sarcastically at seeing Ganondorf ride in from the Valley and up to the stables. I watched until he and his whole army rode up the steep hill from practice, fiddling with a stray piece of fabric on my ripped up pants. I hopped down from the rail and stomped all the way to the stables as quickly as my sore legs would manage. I watched all of the girls file out of the stables, chattering with each other about the cute boys they saw when they stopped in Hyrule Market Place. I waited in a shadows, watching Ganondorf. I watched him with a certain confusion in my eyes. _Could he have had something to do with all of this? How else could it have happened? He's one of the only people here who knows me. I didn't just wander into the desert in my sleep. Did I?_

I was interrupted by Ganondorf, walking out of the stables. I silently followed. I was a good amount of space behind him, but somehow, he knew I was there.

"Hasn't this happened before?" He asked, turning around to face me. I stopped in my tracks and almost managed to smile.

"Where were you this morning?" I continued walking toward him, but stopped when there were still a few paces left between us. I wasn't in the mood for anybody to be near me, as strange as that sounds.

"I was in Hyrule. I didn't make it back until right now."

"What were you doing out there for so long?" I didn't care. This was small talk, because I didn't know how to tell him what happened.

"Just boring things...Why are you all ripped up?" He asked, sounding concerned.

_Ah, what the hell. I'll just tell him._

"You told Mita to bring me two witch doctors, they did something to me, I woke up lost in the Haunted Wasteland, I didn't remember anything, I heard Mita screaming, she told me about hags, she disappeared, I went looking for you and her, she said she was fine and then these two old witches, Koume and Kotake, who, by the way, can morph into one woman named Twinrova, admitted to killing my mother. And here I am before you, wanting an explanation."

He looked at me, utterly confused. "Koume and Kotake killed your mother?"

"Yes." I looked at him, without a trace of emotion. My eyes drifted to the sand. "Do you know them?"

"No," he said, a bit to quickly. I snapped my eyed back up to meet his. My eyes narrowed a bit, and I asked, "How did you tell them I was sick, then?"

"I only knew that they are the nearest doctors."

"But I'm not sick. Why would you tell them that I was?"

"Your highness, you have a caller at the Valley Gate," Mita interrupted. I looked behind Ganondorf where she stood.

Ganondorf looked back at me, then took the opportunity and left with Mita to Gerudo Valley. I scowled at his back, and stood like a loner at the foothill to the stables. _What _did _Koume and Kotake do when I was in their care? _I looked at my arms. I didn't see anything different. Then I felt my neck for scars, and looked at my stomach. Nothing was out of place.

I was still searching for signs of attempted murder when Mita returned. "What are you doing?" She asked.

"Nothing." I straightened up and looked at Mita. I felt the blood leave my face again. She had a light pink scar on her neck, that wasn't there last night. "So, what happened last night?"

"I just took you to Koume and Kotake, to get you healed. Do you feel any better?"

"There was nothing wrong with me to begin with."

"Really? He told me that you were having trouble breathing."

"What?! Why would he say that? It's so random."

"I have no clue. Do you think he's acting strangely?"

"I do now." I was still staring at her scar. It looked like somebody tried to kill her with a dull dagger, though the scar was very thin. I knew enough about dagger wounds from trying to live in the alleyways of Hyrule Market. Other waifs are not kind when you steal their sleeping ditch. "What were you doing when you came looking for me?"

"I only looked around the second tower for you. Enough of this, you desperately need new clothes." She put her arm around my shoulders and walked with me to Lati and Ival's workplace. When they saw me, they gasped theatrically in unison.

"What's happened to you?" Ival exclaimed. She rushed up, put her hands on my arms, and began searching over me. She started twirling me around to search for damage. Lati came up as well, and they both went behind the curtain to get me new clothes.

"Here, put these on." They handed me the usual garb in all white. I changed, and once I was back into the room, where everybody was whispering, Lati and Ival seemed pleased as ever.

"Beautiful, as always!"

"Doesn't it feel much nicer to be in flawless clothes?"

"Yes." I still felt like crap.

"Come on, let's go and get your make-up done." Mita started off toward the next room where all the vials and bowls full of powders and goos where, and where Yedal and Farah would be with them.

As much as I wanted to forget what happened, I could still hear that shrill voice in my head. The voice that fessed up to killing my own mother. Those old hags were responsible for sending me into a downward spiral for five years._ And what the fuck did she mean, "We knew that you would be a great deal of trouble for us someday"? If I was such trouble to them, why didn't they let my poor mother live and kill _me_ instead? How was my mother a distraction?! Fuck them!!_

I was deep into my thoughts when I felt something on my cheek, being smoothed over the rest of my face. I realized that I was already with Farah and Yedal. I barley heard them saying hello, and couldn't remember whether or not I responded.

"So, we heard you woke up in the middle of nowhere," Farah said, looking at me in the glass in front of us.

"Yes. Have you ever met two witch doctors named Koume and Kotake?"

"No," Yedal said. She gently moved my chin up to put black paste on my eyes.

"I haven't either." Farah continued brushing my hair.

"Try to avoid them." I watched all of the happenings in the mirror, as indifferent as could be.

"All done!" Farah snapped the jeweled clasp onto my hair, and Yedal wiped a smudge of chalky black powder from my cheek.

"Your hair is very shiny today," Yedal said, gathering the used jars up. _Figures. _

"Thank you," I said, managing to smile. I was glad to hear the same old thing, and no surprises.

"She's right." Farah took a step back to admire her work. "It's much softer, too."

I smiled again, a bit duller than before, but still a good bargain. I stood up, and sighed in semi-satisfaction. I wanted everything to leave with the air in my lungs, but it never did.

As soon as Ganondorf's mysterious caller left, he came up to the throne room where Mita and I were waiting.

"Bye, Sushmita," He said.

Mita looked at me in an "I told you so" kind of way, and then left.

"What was that about?" I asked, smirking as Ganondorf walked closer.

"What was what all about?" He asked, walking until he was beside me.

"Never mind." I looked over at him. He looked sort of angry, which I was only used to if there was somebody else around. I decided to keep my mouth shut unless he spoke to me, in fear of saying something to upset him more.

"So...Do you feel any better after Koume and Kotake took care of you?"

_Damn_. "I didn't know that there was anything wrong in the first place."

"Really? I thought that you told me you couldn't breathe easily yesterday."

_What the hell? I never told you anything of the sort. _"No." I pursed my lips together_. _I thought he was insane.

"I could have sworn that you told me last night that you couldn't breathe. Anyways," He shook his head, "I needed to get Sushmita away from me. She was asking all kinds of questions about why I was gone for the entire day. I thought that I could send her with you."

"What _were _you doing out in Hyrule? You never answered me."

"I was looking for people to rob." He didn't answer fast enough. I could tell he was lying.

"You hardly had anything on you when you returned, though." _Tell the truth, or get a better excuse._

"We never found anybody good."

"The whole night you were gone?"

"No."

_I digress._

"So who are Koume and Kotake? Just witch doctors?" _Who killed my mother?_

"I guess so. I've known about them since I was a kid; they tried to help my mother, but she died anyway."

That sparked a new thought into my head. I never even thought about Ganondorf having any parents. I didn't even know what to say. Nobody ever said anything to me about my mother, so I had no idea how to console somebody in that situation.

"I'm sorry," was the best I could muster.

All Ganondorf did was shrug, and leave. I stood there like an idiot for a moment, then decided to try to find Mita. She was the only one who made sense anymore.

That night, I woke up to about four people blindfolding me and dragging me out of my bed chamber. There was a hand over my mouth, so I didn't bother screaming for long. No use loosing my breath when a fight would turn out better in my favor. I tried to get my scimitar until I remembered that Kotake stole it. I cursed in my mind, and flailed to try and escape. All they did was kick me, and since I was outnumbered, I decided to try to figure out what was going on. I was struggling subconsciously with no avail, and since I was lucky enough to be dragged by my arms, I used all the momentum I had to swing my legs up. I hit one of my captors, because I heard a yelp and one arm hit the ground. I felt sand, so I could evaluate that I was somewhere in the desert still. I hit and clawed the hell out of the remaining captor, but the other three were busy tying up my legs. Soon enough, I was somehow in a canvass sack, getting tossed into freezing cold water. I couldn't move around much in the bag, so I searched for the main source of water flow, and tried to push through it. It must be the opening. I was almost completely out of breath, my heart was racing, and my head was filling up with blood, before I finally pushed through into open water. I did my best to get to the surface. As soon as I felt air, I was spitting up water and gasping for a breath. I used my shoulder to shove the blindfold off, and squinted at my surroundings. I was in an enormous lake, but one I had never seen before. I was in the middle of it, and couldn't see any land. Just tall trees and mountains lining the water, and an overcast sky. I looked closer and saw a little island, not to far away. I swam (sort of) over to it, and used my elbows to pull my body over the ledge. I lied on my back, and looked up at the plain indigo sky. My head was screaming at me with so many unanswerable questions that I had to squirm in place. The uncertainty and insanity of it all was killing me.

_What the hell is this? What just happened? Where am I? Who would do this? Why do I keep winding up lost in the middle of nowhere?! _

I lifted my hands to my mouth and gnawed at the ropes bounding my wrists. Once I finally chewed through, I ripped the ropes on my ankles. I stood up, and looked around for anything remotely familiar. All I saw was water. Water so cold it was almost still, so cold it was almost green. I saw bare trees protruding from the water; one was arched, as if it were growing from two different places underwater. It was all too much for even me.

I started to breath harder every pant. My heart was beating so fast that it hurt, my chest tightened, and my head pounded worse than ever before. I felt my face get hot, and I began to pace on the small island. I could feel my face form into an angry, ill-tempered, not far from vicious expression. I stopped pacing, and breathing. Finally, something deep inside of me snapped, letting every sane thing in my body leak out.

I began screaming at top volume, fell to the ground, and hacked with my arms at anything that I could touch. I was practically flailing around, looking for anything to destroy. I shredded the dirt under my feet, and ripped up every bush to a pulp. I finally stood up again, to try to console myself. But I couldn't stop screaming. I ripped hair out of my head, and in momentum of the fit, flew my right arm straight into the tree behind me. That just made me scream even more. I was waiting for my arm to swing back to my side, but it never fell back down. I finally stopped moving, and looked at it. My arm had a sharp tree branch stuck straight into it, holding it suspended. I counted to three, and ripped my arm away from the tree as quickly as possible. I screamed louder than before, and clutched my left hand to my right arm. That was a horrible thing to do, considering the dirt covering my palm. It stung like hell! I tried to tell myself not to be a baby. _Just get it bandaged, faint-heart._

I listened to my thoughts, and turned my right arm inward to asses the wound. A gaping whole was found. It was bleeding badly. I looked at the tree that was to blame, and grinned.

_You just may be of some help, you bastard. _

The bark is green enough to be of help. I learned a trick a few years back: If you find a tree just like this one, take some of its bark, mash it until it has gone soft, and tie it to your cut. I had no idea how helpful it would be for a huge injury such as this, but it couldn't hurt.

Now, I need to find a knife. _Oh, goody._

The best I could manage was a sharp rock. I sawed off some bark from the stupid tree, a very difficult task considering my dominant arm was limp. I did not bother to thank the tree for it's healing bark. I figured that since it was the one that hurt me, the least it could do was offer some of its bark to help me out. I used the same rock to rip a good piece of material from my pants. I mashed up the bark as well as possible until it was soft enough for my liking. I splashed it with some water, which stung even more, and used my little new cloth to fasten the inner part of the bark to my arm. I decided that the cloth would easily come undone, so I used my hair clasp to fasten it. The gold arm bands were too small, and covered in so much blood that I would have rather not touched them.

_That should help. _

I felt my arm sting, but ignored it. My face was cooling down, and my breathing was evening out. My tantrum had come to an awaited end. After all that has happened, I suppose it all finally caught up with me. That was the first tantrum I had ever thrown before, and wasn't going to welcome another. I was sick of waking up in places I didn't know, sick of being confused, sick of hearing those hags' voices in my head. I couldn't control myself anymore.

I was doing some heavy-duty reflecting on the past few weeks, when I heard water sloshing. I looked up, and saw a blue thing coming at me. I stood up, a bit scared to find out what it was. When it got closer, I saw a little Zora girl, with huge purple eyes.

We just stared at each other a while. She had a stupid little grin, and I was just looking at her, confused.

"Hi!" She chirped. "Who are you?" She kept the little grin.

"I'm Nabooru of the Gerudo," I said, straightening up. "And you are..."

"I'm Princess Ruto, of the Zora." She spoke with a slight lisp. She really was a cute little thing. "It's nice to meet you, Nabooru! I have never met a Gerudo before." She stopped blabbing and gasped. "What happened to your arm?! Did you hurt on on your way here? When did you get here, anyways? Did you bring any friends? Is it true that you are all girls, except for your King?" She squealed. "Are you the Queen?" She had the dopiest little grin that she was starting to grow on me already. _Don't get attached, she's just a little kid. Now is no time to get soft. _

"I just hurt it right now. I don't have friends with me, though. I guess you could say I was the Queen...And you're right, Gerudo are all woman." _Except for one recently turned insane King. I swear to Din, if I find him... _My thoughts were interrupted by Ruto.

"Why are you so far from home? My daddy told me that Gerudo come from the westernmost part of Hyrule. We're far away!"

"Honestly...I have no idea why I'm here, or how I arrived. I got kidnapped and wound up here. Where are we, exactly?"

"Zora's Fountain, just above Zora's River and Zora's Domain! This is where Lord Jabu-Jabu lives. I feed him a single fish to show respect every day."

"Lord Jabu-Jabu?" I raised an eyebrow. "Where is he, then?"

"He stays at the bottom of the water until I come with a fish." She giggled before continuing, "He's very lazy, just like my daddy!"

_I was in the water with a fish lord? Weird._

Ruto suddenly gasped and clapped her webbed hands, "I can ask my daddy if you can stay here for the night! _We can be best friends!!"_

"Uh, I would, but I really need to get home soon." _I like you and all, but no way am I staying here with a bunch of Zora. Especially if they all act like you do. _

"Aww...that's too bad, Nabooru. I bet you can't swim back with that arm, huh? Hey! I can help you swim back! Here, hold onto my shoulders!" She spun around and faced the water. "Normally, I would never let the anybody touch me. But, since we're best friends, I'll make an exception!" _Thanks, I guess._

"Uh...Are you sure?" I didn't know if she could swim with me holding onto her.

"Of course! Now hold on tight!" I really would have preferred to just inch my way back. But as much as I wanted to believe that I could, deep down, I knew that I would most likely drown. I never learned how to swim, and with a bad arm, it wouldn't be easy. I carefully put my hands onto her shoulders.

"Ready?! Hold your breath!" Before I could, I was submerged in the freezing water. Ruto could swim so fast that I had to hold on tighter than I wanted to not to let go and be stranded in the middle of the lake. I looked down, and saw that the water went down at least thirty more feet. I saw no fish lord, but I did see little fish everywhere. I felt my the pant leg that I cut fill up with water, and it was weighing me down. I was starting to worry. My lungs were tightening, and I felt like I was slipping. For whatever reason, Ruto started humming a song that I had never heard before. It was very pretty, and somehow, when I heard it, I stopped wishing that I could go to the surface for air. I didn't really need it anymore. Something about that song made me able to be underwater with nothing about my body able to disrupt the peace of mind it brought. Before I knew it, I was on a platform overlooking all of Zora's River. If I looked closely enough, I could barely see Lon Lon ranch and Hyrule castle, way off in the distance.

"Now, my servants will walk you out to Hyrule Field," Ruto said, sounding accomplished. She clapped her hands, and two Zora approached us from a dark opening to the left.

"What was the song you sang?" I asked, focusing on Ruto. The guards waited patiently.

"Oh, did you like it?" Ruto giggled, covering her mouth with her little hand. "That was the Serenade of Water. It's the lullaby my mommy used to play for me!"

"Oh..." I remembered the lullaby that my mom used to play for me when I was still very young. She never told me what it was called, but I loved it.

Without warning, I dropped to my knees, and threw my arms around Ruto. I didn't care that she was a fish, or that the guards were looking at me with confused expressions.

"Thank you so much, Ruto." I kept hugging her. I felt like she was the only person left that actually liked me.

"You're welcome, Nabooru! And don't worry, I have a feeling that we will meet again." I let go, and walked over to the guards. They nodded, and started off into the dark again. I turned around, and waved at the little dope. She was just so little and friendly, that I couldn't help but like her. She waved back. _This is probably the last I'll ever see of you._

"But, Nabooru, be careful! Daddy tells me that curses have fallen upon Death Mountain and Kokiri Forest! Don't travel there."

"What do you mean, curses?"

"They are filled with monsters! Haven't you seen Death Mountain? It's all smokey gray! Something terrible is about to happen!"

I got home as soon as the sun was up. _My favorite time of day! _As soon as I trudged up the stairs to the Fortress, all of the guards looked at me. They all shot each other surprised expressions. Once they realized that I was watching, they returned to their posts. Sure, I was covered in dirt, my hair was wet and stringy, and I ad a huge bandage wound in my arm. But shouldn't somebody be glad to see me alive after they _throw me into a lake across Hyrule to drown!? At this point, I blame each and every one of you._

After walking past gaggles of whispering girls, I stormed into the throne room. Mita jumped and turned around. When she saw me so disheveled, her eyes got wide.

"What happened now?!" She ran over, and inspected my arm.

"I woke up, got blindfolded, beaten up and tied up, somebody stuffed me into a sack, threw me into Zora's Fountain with Lord Jabu-Jabu or whatever the hell his name is, I swam to shore, untied myself, ended up getting stuck with a really sharp tree branch in my arm, bandaged it, met the Zora princess, she helped me get back, and here I am." I didn't bother telling her about my tantrum.

"Does Ganondorf know about this?" She was untying my arm, and when she saw the wound, she gasped. "Good Din, Nabooru!" She held my arm, turned it about, and then called for somebody named Izdihar. A very short woman came into the room, carrying all manner of healing tools. _Ugh. _

She ran up to me, inspected the bark, and then searched through her stash.

"I just got here. I haven't seen him since yesterday." Izdihar was wiping the blood with a stinging clear liquid, and retied the bark to my arm with soft cloth.

"You are a very smart girl! How did you know that this tree bark had healing powers?" Izdihar asked.

"I learned a few years back from a nomad from Termina." Izdahar left with that, scurriying out of the room with her things.

"We need to find him. I heard that he is up to something out in the Spirit Temple with Koume and Kotake."

"What do you mean? He told me that he'd never met them."

"Oh, he knows those two alright. They say he's been plotting to take over Hyrule, with their help."

"Take over Hyrule? How do you know all of this?"

"Did you ever wonder what he's been up to in Hyrule all of this time?"

"Not really."

"Well," Mita leaned in closer, and spoke quieter, "I asked around, and it's pretty clear that he has been looking to steal the three Spiritual Stones. But I also hear he's had some trouble. There's been some kid in green parading around Hyrule for the Princess, beating him to the punch. The kid already has two."

"What are the Spiritual Stones, anyway?"

"Legend has it, that these three stones can open the doorway to the Master Sword in the Temple of Time. Whoever has those stones, along with the Royal Family's ocarina, can travel through time. I think it means disaster, in his hands."

Ruto was right. Something terrible _is _about to happen to Hyrule.

**Yes, it's all coming together.**

**BY THE WAY: I got a PM about this...**

**Sushmita: shoosh-ME-tuh / Mita: ME-tuh**

**Ival: ee-VAHL**

**Lati: LOHT-ee**

**Yedal: yeh-DAHL**

**Farah: FAIR-uh**

**Izdahar: IZZ-duh-har**

**Does that clear things up some?**


	9. Chapter 9

"Ganondorf?" I stood behind him, waiting for him to turn around. After what felt like an eternity of hunting him down, I was almost glad to see him. But then I remembered why I was looking. I could feel my face turn into a bitter expression.

"Yes?" He sighed, turning around to face me. He seemed to be growing impatient with me showing up this way.

"What are the Spiritual Stones?" I blurted out. I chided myself for not being able to control what I said, even though I probably would have dodged the question otherwise.

I watched him start to frown. "Follow me." He started walking toward the Fortress.

"Why can't you just tell me?" My voice went from the usual slow and thought out tone to a quick and hassled one. I was starting to get impatient now, too.

"I'll tell you if you follow me," he called monotonously over his shoulder.

"Fine. Where are we going, then?" I asked. I walked behind him until we reached the library. He stopped by a shelf with books on Hyrule's History and Mythology.

"Why are we back here?" I asked, shutting the door gently behind me.

"Because, this is where I told you my last secret. I figure that it's... good luck, somehow."

"Why do you need good luck?" I glared at him suspiciously. "Just tell me your little secret, and all is well."

"I need good luck because I know you will hate what I'm about to admit." He looked at me for the first time in a while. Or at least, it's the first time he's _really_ looked at me. He stared at me, studying my expression. I got a bit of a headache, and finally asked, "What is it?"

"I am...going to be back soon." He ducked past me and out of the room as fast as possible, which was really quite fast. I hardly could look at him he ran out so quickly.

"Ganondorf!" No answer, just the door clicking shut. _Dammit! What the hell is his problem? _For somebody his age, he acted like he was _my_ age.

I turned to the door. But when I opened it, I was in the Desert Colossus, right outside of the Spirit Temple.

_... What the fuck-_

Once again, a hand was over my mouth and I was being hauled off. This time, I wasn't so nice. I kicked, punched, clawed, bit, and pinched my way put of the bony arms around my neck. I turned around to see Twinrova.

"Miss me?" She taunted. I was about to throw a punch when she said, "If I were you, I would turn around."

_No way._ It was a trick. "Why should I listen to you?" I snarled, glaring at her. I was winding up for another punch when she shrugged her thin shoulders. "Fine."

I was about to unleash the fury on her ugly face again, when I felt a hand clamp around my right arm violently. Somebody was dragging me back onto the ground, so I slapped my hand onto the arm and drew my fingernails down it before it reached my raw wound. I didn't much care that I was being attacked again, just so long as my wound was left alone.

The hand released my arm, and I got up and turned around. I looked upon the Gerudo Guard suddenly in front of me, wearing a red uniform. I half expected twin scimitars to slash at me, but she appeared to be empty handed. Something about her was off, though: Her eyes were not as gold as any other Gerudo I had seen. They were Ganondorf's color...Come to think of it, his were darker too, almost yellow instead of gold.

I turned around again to face Twinrova, but she was long gone. I spun back around to avoid another attack. The guard backhanded my face as soon as I was in reach. I gripped her hand before it fell to her side and twisted her arm awkwardly. Despite the beating I had received earlier, I was more than up to a fight right now.

She bit my arm in weak retaliation. I let go, and kicked her sharply in the stomach. She was doubled over for a moment, so I took the opportunity and pounced, and even on the soft sand I could hear the thud of her head. I sat on her stomach in order to keep her pinned, and drove each fist into her face over and over. She wriggled one arm from under my leg while I punched and hit me in the throat as hard as she could. Considering I was beating her to a pulp, it was weak but for the area, I will admit she chose wisely. I coughed and stood up, then slammed my foot into her side. She rolled over and jumped at me. We hurtled to the ground again, kicked and bit until she was sitting on me the way I was before. She was much less poised; her legs were twisted strangely and she couldn't hold me down for long. So, I gleefully took the advantage. I dug my fingernails into her shoulders, hooked my foot under her belt and flipped her off of me. I heard a pop and a scream soon after. I rolled onto my stomach. I laughed a bit to menacingly for my peace of mind at the sight of her right arm wrenched beneath her back. She didn't get up, so I walked carefully to her, keeping my distance. She was tearing up and whimpering. She must have landed on her arm while it was crooked. I stood at a safe distance, watching her struggle to free her arm. I stepped with just enough pressure onto her stomach to keep her from getting up, and bent down to inspect her for any weapons. She was unarmed like I suspected, so I took my foot off of her heaving gut.

"I didn't spend years training myself to get beaten down by a pathetic _cell guard_. Did you think that you could defeat me? Really, I didn't take any of you as masochists." I saw her eyes well up even more, and she started sobbing. I decided to walk away before I caused any permanent emotional or physical damage.

_Some women are so touchy, it's pathetic._

I slowly made my way back to the Fortress. The whole way there, I felt the bruises spreading across my left cheek and my throat was still feeling odd from her jab. But, I took pride in my victory. I hoped that I would see her around soon just to see all of the bruises she would have.

I got the same reaction as I did coming home earlier: Surprised looks from everybody, and even more frantic whispering. I was beginning to realize that everybody was in on this. Mita was the only one who seemed normal anymore. _Unless..._

I went back to the library looking for Ganondorf, simply because I didn't know what else to do. That, and I wanted him to admit his little plan. Then it dawned on me:

_Is this his fault? Is he trying to kill me? Why would he do that? Am I really that big of a problem, that people are trying to kill me?! What have I ever done to anybody here?! I haven't talked to half of these people before! This is insanity. _

I was fazing out into my thoughts, shifting my weight from one foot to another, when I felt a hand on my shoulder. I instinctively slapped my hand onto it and turned around, to find Ganondorf backing off with his hands in the air.

"Sorry," he said. "I didn't know you would be so hostile."

"Well, can you really blame me? I just opened the door and ended up fighting a cell guard in the Desert Colossus!"

"That was only a test."

"A test?" I asked. "A test for _what_?"

"To make sure you still fit the position of second in command. You did nicely."

_What the hell? _"Well, how did I just magically appear in the Desert Colossus?!"

"Just as you said, by magic. Actually, it was more like mind altercation."

_I don't need any more_ 'mind altercations'_... _"Fine, I can believe that. Speaking of 'mind altercations', I saw your associates again."

"My associates?" Ganondorf asked, concealing a look.

"Koume and Kotake. Or Twinrova. Whoever the hell they are, they killed my mother, and I want to know why you're working with them, trying to steal Spiritual Stones and trying to_take over Hyrule_!"

I couldn't believe I just spit all of that out at once. I wanted to go about it as civilly as possible.

He lookeed at me again, and my headache returned. "Who told you about that?" He asked.

"Mita," I said while folding my arms.

"I guess I've been found out. Din, it's about time. I thought that it was quite obvious... Anyway, how do you keep escaping from where my guards drop you? You are even more persistent a fighter than I had expected. Nobody I know could escape like you have, let alone after being beaten and thrown underwater."

"You knew about all of this?" I asked, having to try to keep my voice audible.

"Of course I did." He said this like it was fine, almost like it was _normal._ That got me so angry that I started rambling.

"Well then, why do they keep happening? Are you behind all of this? Were you behind my mother's death, too?!" I demanded. I could feel the backs of my eyes getting hot. I had no idea what it meant, but I hated the sensation. For a terrible moment I thought I would cry from frustration. My anger always did get the best of me. It was the only thing I could count on to always be near.

"I'm working with them because they know black magic, like I do. What did you think I was doing at the Spirit Temple, anyway?"

I felt bad enough about loosing the Spirit Temple. And now I find out it was to _him?_

"Certain spells they can perform will brainwash people. That's why you thought you were in the Colossus, I brainwashed you a bit. You were only out front. We have already brainwashed almost every Gerudo alive, with you being one of the only exceptions." He stopped, and thought for a moment. "Actually, maybe I should stop trying to get rid of you. Having you around might be even better than tossing you in the river with a ball and chain on your ankle. It could be... _very fun_." An evil grin formed on his lips, just like the one from before. "As a matter of fact, I was behind your mother's death. It would make it much easier for me to get to you. Since you haven't been able to show yourself in the daylight for five years, I knew that you would be easy to lure into a position of power. You would have been legally put to death if you refused, after you told me your life situation." He said this with the same tone as before. That stupid, common-place tone.

"...What?!" I gasped. I couldn't come up with a real response. I felt my throat get hot now, too. _He's lying. He has to be lying. If he isn't...It really is all my fault... My mother died just because of me... Why would he want to kill my mother and get to_ me _anyway? I have nothing to offer! _

Ganondorf didn't answer me. He just snapped his fingers like the first time I met him, and multiple guards rushed into the room. I was startled, and completely caught in an very unalert state. They all ran at me, and bound my wrists behind my back. They were much more brutal than before, and one of them slapped me. The others giggled. I saw the cocky grin on the guard's face, along with dark purple bruises on her cheeks. Her arm was swollen and bandaged. I just stood gaping at Ganondorf. Before they left, one of them kicked the backs of my knees so that I fell to the ground before him.

I just stared at the floor, my eyes stinging with the surge of different unwelcome emotions. I couldn't think clearly.

"Did you honestly believe that this was all a coincidence? You really _are_ only fourteen." I looked up at him. He had his back to me. I watched in cold silence as he left his place to get a small book from the shelf beside me, and flipped through it a while before ripping a page out. He looked back at me and effortlessly crumpled the paper in his hand. He then came back beside me and put his free hand on my shoulder, turning me to face him head-on. I stopped moving, and didn't even dare to breath.

"Do you see this map?" He opened up the serrate page, and held it in front of my face for me to see. I glanced at it for a short moment. Hyrule Market was circled, and there were X's through Kokiri Forest and Death Mountain. Zora's Domain had an X through it as well. "Does it tell you anything? Anything at all?"

I stared at it, my eyes growing watery. I had no idea what was going on. "What did you do to these places?" My voice was strange. It was quiet, almost scared-sounding.

"I went to negotiate taking the Spiritual Stones from their homes. None of those lack wits agreed, so I had to use force. I killed the Deku Tree and destroyed the bomb crop in Death Mountain, but that damned 'Hero of Time' eliminated my creations and sent all my plans into a downward spiral. He has the Kokiri's Emerald and the Goron's Ruby now, and possibly even the Zora's Sapphire.."

"What did you do to Zora's Domain?" My voice was uncontrollably shaky.

"Considering the fact that their thick King denied my request for the Zora's Sapphire, I cursed their absurd fish-lord. His stomach is teeming with electrified monsters. When their dear Princess Ruto goes to feed the ridiculous thing, she will be swallowed, and most likely killed by the creatures I sent to work."

I felt an unmistakable lump in my throat. "You can't..." _Not Ruto..._

Suddenly, he grabbed the back of my hair and violently hauled me off of my knees. Our faces were inches apart, and I had to lower my eyes to hide the pain and sadness along with useless defiance showing in them. He spoke quietly near my ear, "I can do what I please. Nobody can stop me now."

As soon as he stopped talking, I felt tears run down my cheek. I tried to shake my head in frustration and sadness, to try to stop crying, but his hold was too strong.

He laughed when he heard me sniffle. It was his real, _evil_ laugh, the one that I remembered from our first encounter. "Why? Did you become attached to the brat when you woke up in Zora's Fountain?"

I felt tears running down my face so fast and so suddenly, that I could barely breath.

"Why haven't you given up yet? There must be a reason. Nobody is that persistent, not even a fiery tempered, stubborn girl such as yourself." He stopped to look at me like I had the answer written across my face, which, perhaps, was half true. My eyes showed it all. That, and he already knew. "Is it because I lulled you into a sense of false security? You couldn't stop thinking you were loved, could you?"

"No," I said, ashamed at my trembling voice. This is the first fragment of real emotion I've shown in public in years, and to do it at a time like this was...Inevitable, actually. I was bound to loose it sooner or later. But doing it in front of him now felt humiliating, to say the least.

"Don't be a little baby." He twisted his hand to heighten my pain, and seemed to enjoy seeing me cringe. "I thought that you were stronger than this, and now you are crying... I suppose that I was sorely mistaken." He released my hair, and gently put his hand on my face. He tilted my head upward, and toward his. I resisted, but it was no use. As much as I hate to admit it, he was stronger than I was in every way. "Come to think of it, I only chose you because I thought you were beautiful... You just _happened _to be a good fighter. It's a bit of a compliment, really. I could have any girl I want, and I chose to have you. And to make it even better for me, you were so easily tricked! You were the perfect selection."

I tried to yank my face from his palm in anger. He laughed again, and tightened his grip. "Don't pull away, it's no use. Besides, I love looking at you." I felt my head throbbing from his forceful tugging at my hair along with the blood rushing to my face.

"After that stupid kid from the forest goes to rescue your little fish friend, he will either be killed, or get to the Zora's Sapphire, the third Spiritual Stone. Once he does, that Hylian brat of a Princess will give him the Ocarina of Time for him to open the sealed door in the Temple of Time, allowing me to steal the Triforce of Power."

I inhaled sharply, and exhaled in a very unsteady manner, a weak attempt to calm myself down. Ganondorf scoffed before continuing, "You had better get used to hearing about these things. Hyrule as you know it is mine. Gerudo Valley is the only place that will thrive. Anything and everything that defies me will be destroyed, including _you_. You ought to be careful of what you do and say around these women from now on. They will accuse you of treason for the slightest implication of your disapproval. However, I will find a punishment I see fit." He grinned at me again.

I looked at him with nothing but sadness in my eyes. He had no expression. The most I found was an understated sublime look in his eyes. "You will come to accept it. Believe me, you will see things in a new way very soon. I will send you back with Sushmita to Twinrova to get that injury taken care of." I suddenly felt a twinge of pain in my arm.

"I need to steal the Ocarina of Time from the Royal Family as well... I am arranging a raid on Hyrule Castle soon. I need you to come with me and help. I will distract the King, our guards will distract theirs, and you will go and take the ocarina from that brat of a princess, Zelda, and her little babysitter. It should be easy for you, even though you have just proved me wrong about your strength. If you are armed properly, a mere Sheikah should be no match for even you. All you will need to do is find the brat's bed chamber. Then, get inside, eliminate the Sheikah, and take the ocarina. Then you give it to me."

I didn't know what an _Ocarina of Time _was, or how it could possibly help him. I finally sniffled, and looked at the door. _Maybe I could escape? _I quickly dropped the thought, remembering exactly who I was dealing with.

The King of Thieves. He wins at_ everything._

He suddenly kissed me, and I didn't even bother to fight him off. It was no use; nothing was worth fighting for now. I hated him. The kiss was selfish, greedy and forceful, just like I originally expected. He let me fall gracelessly to the ground again before storming out, slamming the door shut behind him. I felt like I was just slapped awake from a dead sleep. In a way I was - that was a rude awakening from a pleasant dream-like state.

I sat on my haunches, hanging my head down in shame and misery. The tears were coming even faster, falling onto the stone floor in front of me. I couldn't believe it. This was the worst thing that could happen to me. My mother was killed just so that I could be Ganondorf's mistress. Everything I had come to know was a lie. I was trapped here.

_How could I have let my guard down? I guess I am as naive as I look..._

I hated this. It made me feel so useless and pathetic. I have never been this emotional, and I wasn't used to feeling like I should toughen up. I was the tough one! Not the sap. The very thought of being this pathetic made me cry even more, sending me back to the start. I closed my eyes, frowning, and more tears ran down my face.

All of a sudden, Mita came into the library.

"Get up," She ordered curtly. I noticed through my blurry eyes that she had bruises on her shoulders, along with a small, raw stab wound next to her old one.

_Mita...Not you too...Please tell me they didn't get to you..._

I stood, sniffling, and she grabbed my arm, right where the tree had punctured it. I sniffed quietly from the pain, but shut up when she started pulling me to the door. She led me through the Fortress, through the Haunted Wasteland, to the building with those horrible witches. As soon as I walked through the door, I started crying again. I couldn't handle any of this. My body was trying to purge the venomous emotions, and it just happened to be through crying.

_I'm not weak._

"Koume! Kotake!" Mita yelled. "She's here."

"Ah! Finally." Koume walked out of a room to our left, carrying some kind of small brown bag full of dark blue powder. The contents were emitting smokey dust into the air like steam.

Kotake followed her sister. "Bring her in here."

Mita yanked me through the black, ratty curtains into a large, empty room. She shoved me onto the floor. I looked around, but nothing was there. A guard walked in then and undid the cloth around my arm, took the bark, and tossed it over her shoulder with disgust. Koume came and held me down by my forearm and my cheek. I tried to turn my face away but she was too strong. Kotake came to us, and held my arm in place with her talon-fingers. She sprinkled a bit of the powder onto my arm. It felt like somebody was slowly pulling a huge knife out of my arm. I writhed from the torturous pain, and the guard came back from her post with Mita to hold me down because Kotake was having trouble.

"I'm finished. You're pretty again." Kotake stood above me, smirking at the sight of my blood on the ground.

"Well, almost." Koume released me, and left the room with Kotake. The guard left with them, and Mita was approaching. I looked at my arm. There was no scar at all. My wound was completely healed. Mita shoved another gold bangle onto my arm, and untied my sore wrists.

"You're free to go. Ganondorf has requested to keep your brainwashing for another day or so, until he finalizes things with the Spiritual Stones, or something; I wasn't listening to him. But I think it's just to torture you."

I didn't move. I just let the tears keep on coming. I tried to lift my head, but just let it fall back down. I tried to ignore the pain, but I still winced.

"Don't even try to leave Gerudo Valley; we've put up a gate with guards on watch at the bridge. All just to keep you here! Ganondorf really had his mind set on offing you, but _no_, now he wants to keep you for whenever he wants you. Of all the girls here, you're _that_ special to him," she said, her words dripping with sarcasm. She sauntered out of the room, leaving me on the ground a mess.

_I can't trust anybody anymore._ I scolded myself for being so stupid.

_It's always been up to me to survive._ _I've always been better off this way. _Trying to console myself wouldn't work.

All of this had happened so quickly. I should have stuck with my plan and gone to Termina. Aveil would have looked after me. I scolded myself for being such a typical child. That was what I had always avoided: being naive and inexperienced. I always had my guard up, and it always served me well. What made me stupid enough to change that? I never let anybody get that close to me before. And I _cried_. That was a very self-conflicting matter for me. I hadn't cried since the day my mother died. I wasn't used to being emotional_. _I never wanted to be. I never cared about anything. It was never useful; it never aided me in any way to get attached to anything. _They will be gone soon, _I told my self every time I met somebody I liked. _They will gone just like mother_. And I was right.

I wasn't a normal child, with food, shelter, and water. I got these things by myself, even when I had a family. I wasn't used to having a normal life at all. I never really knew the difference.

I sat up, and tried to stand. I couldn't even muster the strength. Something inside of me was gone. It wasn't my heart, it wasn't my mind. It was something much more important. Something that makes me who I am. Or was. It destroyed my whole outlook on everything. It destroyed what made me able to smile. It destroyed what I had just come to love again. Ganondorf had destroyed my spirit.

_It's not the first time this has happened to me, at least. Another seven years, and I'll be fine._

I stayed on the floor by myself in the dark for a long time, just crying. I let everything that happened in the past five years catch up with me finally.

_That does it. _I sat up and wiped my eyes, before looking around for any signs that I had company. I realized that with all the tears and rubbing my eyes, I probably looked a mess. I thought everybody had left. So, I headed for the Spirit Temple.

Once inside, I ran up the steps, and took a left. I forgot that the only way to the Silver Gauntlets was through a small hole in the wall. The last I saw them, I was about eleven... I needed them to destroy Ganondorf's plans... Once I moved all of the things blocking entrances to the east wing, I could steal the treasure, and try to find where Ganondorf was with Twinrova.

_There has to be an entrance to the next building somewhere in here._

Then, I could find out all of their plans, and ruin them. I cursed under my breath at the small size of the hole. No way would I fit. Suddenly, I heard padding footsteps run up behind me.

"Hmm?" I asked, spinning around on my heel. I tried to conceal the hole from some kid in green with a fairy, standing there, looking up at me with big blue eyes. Something about his eyes seemed wrong. No boy his age should have such tired eyes.

"I haven't seen you around, kid," I said, giving him a once over. He had a boomerang, a little blade, and a weak slingshot on his belt. "What do you want?"

"Nothing, really." His Gerudo was a bit off, and he had a strange accent that I didn't recognize. Still, I was very impressed. What was he anyway, ten years old? At that thought, a light went off in my head. _Perfect!_

"You have nothing to do? What good timing! Can you do me a favor, kid?" I asked. Then I had another thought. "Wait a second, I want to ask you this first - You wouldn't happen to be one of Ganondorf's..." At saying his name, my voice faded away subconsciously. He cocked his head, waiting for me to finish. "...Followers, would you?"

"What if I am?" He asked.

I burst into laughter at his attempt to be a little tough-guy. "Don't try to act cool, kid. I was just asking! A kid like you could never be one of Ganondorf's followers!" I looked at him, and suddenly recognized him. That stupid kid in Hyrule Field! The one fighting the Stalchild! _Dumb one. He'll probably get himself killed._

_Wait..._ I thought. _The forest kid! The one with the Spiritual Stones!_

"Well, let's cut to the chase... I am Nabooru of the Gerudo, a lone wolf thief." He looked at me suspiciously.

"But don't get me wrong! Though we're both thieves, I am completely different from Ganondorf. With his followers, he stole from women and children. He even killed people!" _Namely, my mother. _"A kid like you may not know this, but the Gerudo race consists only of women. One man is born every hundred years... Even though our laws state that the one male must become King, I will never bow to such an evil man!" I wasn't sure if he understood what I was saying completely. But, I needed his help, so I just dropped the subject.

"By the way, what is your name, kid?"

"I am Link," He said.

"Link?! What kind of a name is that?" I would almost prefer Forest Kid or Fairy Boy to Link. He looked a bit embarrassed, so I changed the subject. "Well... Anyway... I want to ask you a favor. Will you go through this tiny hole and get the treasure that's inside?" I asked slowly. I wanted to make sure he understood this part. He didn't look to excited. To keep him interested, I tried to sweeten up the story a bit. It was really a bore, but he didn't know that. With the right wording, I might get his short attention span to grab hold of the information. _If only._

"The treasure is the Silver Gauntlets. If you equip them, you can easily push and pull very heavy things!" I saw him grin and look off into the distance.

"No, no no, kid! Don't even think about taking this treasure for yourself! The Silver Gauntlets won't fit a kid like you if you try to equip them. I want you to be a good little boy and give them to me!" He looked pouted a bit at this. _Suck it up, kid._

"Ganondorf and his minions are using the Spirit Temple as a hideout." I didn't say, 'The building behind the Spirit Temple' so he wouldn't meddle and get into trouble. He seemed like he could defend himself against the monsters in here, however, there was no telling what kind of creations were lurking in the next tower. "Only the Silver Gauntlets will allow me to sneak deep into the Temple. Once there, I'm going to steal all the treasure inside and mess up their plans!"_ Somehow, I will. I'll find out exactly how later._

"So, how about it? Will you do it?"

"Yes," He nodded to make sure I understood. I could tell he wasn't that confident speaking to me in Gerudo.

"Oh, thanks, kid! You and I, lets give Ganondorf and his followers a big surprise, shall we?" I still didn't trust him. He would run off with them. _How can I convince him to give them to me?_

"If you successfully get the Silver Gauntlets..." I thought about something I could offer.

"I'll ... Do something great for you!" _I can't believe I just said that. He's a kid! Whatever, I don't need to keep the promise. I just need those Gauntlets!_

I stood aside, and watched him crawl through the hole. _Yes! _I waited a while, keeping an eye on the hole for him to crawl back through with the Silver Gauntlets. _He should be back any minute now..._

Out of nowhere, Koume and Kotake appeared on their broomsticks. They glared down at me, slowly shaking their big heads.

"What do you two want now?" I asked, feeling the fight in me pick back up from before.

"Your coming with us, traitor!" They said in unison. They swooped down and grabbed my arms before I could run away. I screamed at top volume from the frustration and defiance.

"Hey!" I said, hitting at their hands. "Where are you taking me?!"

They brought me outside, and hovered, holding me by my arms. "Let me go!"

They looked at each other, shrugged their shoulders, and dropped me down onto the sand. I landed flat with an _oomph. _I tried to stand up, but I was sinking. I looked down and saw a dark swirling pool of quicksand around me. I was already waist deep, stuck between the air and the underworld, it seemed. I tried pushing myself out, but it was no use. It was like a nightmare: I was totaly helpless.

I saw Link on one of the Sand Goddess's hands, looking down in horror. I reached out to him. He seemed so close, but he was almost thirty feet away, and he would be of no help.

"Link! Get out of here! Now!" I sank down farther to my neck. "These witches are using black magic on me!" I sank down farther, and everything was dark.


	10. Chapter 10

I fell through the sand the rest of the way, onto my feet in a dimly lit room. A bit of sand fell through the ceiling onto my head. I looked up in distaste. Then, I became aware of my surroundings. I was in the secondary building, and Koume and Kotake were certainly near.

_Here comes the brainwashing._

I braced myself to forget all I had ever known, and to have that bold, thick line between good and evil permanently blurred until it was unperceivable. I sighed a quick, short sigh. _Oh well. I won't miss much._

Right on cue, the pair wandered through the curtain across the room and advanced toward me.

"Treason!" Koume shouted at me distractedly, looking around the room for something I couldn't identify. "You will be punished, girly. Trust me."

"I know." I didn't mean to sound so vulnerable, but it was unavoidable at this point. I lowered my head and looked at the scattered sand below my feet. I kicked at it a bit, but I missed. That seemed to be happening a lot lately.

_Poor Link. He must be scared out of his mind._

I began to wonder about him. Why was he so much like I was at that age? The same tired, almost hopeless eyes...They were haunting, if nothing else. And his disposition may have even been worse than mine was. To see it from another perspective made me shudder.

I couldn't embrace my sudden change of persona, but the day's happenings had somehow given me sympathy for somebody other than myself. This was unwelcome.

"Do me a favor," Kotake said, shaking me from my thoughts. "Move your wrists."

I looked at her, my brows knit, and did as she said. I wriggled my wrist a bit, and widened my eyes at the sudden restraint on my hands. I was bound to a big, rusted, jagged axe that appeared standing straight up beside me.

"What is this?" I tugged my hands toward my body. The axe didn't budge at all.

"The beginning of your punishment."

"Why an axe?" I asked calmly, still pulling at my hands.

"That's beside the point!" Koume snapped. "This is your last chance, girly."

"So...How is this a punishment? Other than being stuck in here with the two of you, I don't mind terribly, being bound this way."

"Would you mind terribly, if we brought up..." Kotake's mouth twisted upward evilly, and she glanced at Koume.

"Your sister?"

My blood ran cold and my face went pale. I felt something beneath my skin start to boil. My anger was consuming me at the memory, and with it, I started to shake.

"You remember, don't you?" Kotake taunted. "You remember what you did. You filthy, conniving little _brat_."

I felt my anger getting more raw, more powerful. I glared at the two of them, silently building up more fury with every breath, every heartbeat, every second.

"Your sister, if my memory serves me, treated you like the dirt she walked on." Koume said. "You handled it only to a point."

"What memory?" Kotake tossed off under her breath.

"So what?" My voice was caustic.

"Think back, kid. Think about what you've done."

"Stop!" I screamed. I was startled myself; I didn't expect to loose my temper so fast.

"You know what you did. You're no better than Ganondorf."

My sister, nine years my senior, was thankfully almost never around before my mother died. I was too busy tending to my mother to even notice she was gone. Whenever I did see her, I saw an insane, horrid person. She wondered why I hated her so much. She was ballistic! She came home every week from Din knows where accusing me of ruining my mother's health. She told me that I was ugly, stupid, selfish, and useless for as long as I could remember. She said that I was too much for _her _mother to handle, and that I would eventually kill her if I kept on acting out. I never did anything wrong. She used that as the excuse to never being around to help us. It was "My fault, so I should be held fully responsible." I found this so hypocritical, but, If you hear something enough, you begin to believe it. My mother poured the entire family's rupees into educating my sister at a top level, and I was left to be punished for it. But all my sister ever did was stay with her friends, drinking until she slept, and once she awoke, repeating her process of tearing me apart until I took it out on the jagged stone walls with my knuckles. She never helped me with anything. She didn't care about anybody but herself. And she wasn't particularly beautiful. Maybe she was, but I would never know. All I saw when I looked at her was the spoiled bitch she was. She always thought that she was right but she never knew what she was saying. She was so pampered; she really believed that nothing bad ever happens to people like her. She was my polar opposite, and I often wondered how she could be related to me. Maybe the thought of being like her at all was what got to me. And she didn't even _notice. It was who she was._ And I really could not have cared less what made her that way.

My mother was asleep by the time she returned, and I was so outraged at the world at the moment that I wanted to leave and never come back. But I knew my sister was too insane to be trusted. She and my mother had a very unstable relationship. My sister would have killed my mother if Aviel and I weren't around to stop it, and I couldn't allow this to happen. I decided not to fight back. It wasn't worth it. I believed my sister: I was stupid, ugly, selfish, and useless. What was I still alive for? Aveil could handle it once I'm not around to ruin it.

I left our living quarters below the fortress, and went to the bridge. It was unguarded when I was seven, so there was nobody around to see what happened. I picked up a sharp, pointy, very serrated rock on the way. I sat on the edge of the bridge, facing Lake Hylia, hanging my legs off the side, and held it to my neck. I was useless. All I was was trouble that my mother couldn't handle, and eventually, I would kill her.

_Nobody would miss me._

It was then that I saw my sister saunter up on the bridge, returning from yet another wasted day. "What are you doing out here, you stupid little wench?!" She said. "I need you around to take care of my mother. The only thing you'll ever be good for is making up for your mistake. If you weren't born, she would never have gotten so sick. It's all your fault. See what you've done to this family?!"

I couldn't take it anymore. I finally defended myself. "Well, maybe if you didn't try to kill her on a daily basis, she would have a better chance of recovering!" I screamed at her. She only slapped me. It was such a weak hit, that I had to laugh. "Is that all you've got? You're a horrible, stupid, selfish, ugly person, and now to top it off, you're _weak_. Try and hit me again," I quipped. "_I dare you."_

So she did. She knocked the wind out of me, and I fell onto my back. I lifted my head to see her standing over me, smug as ever. I felt anger ripping beneath my skin, trying to escape. But I never let my anger out.

"Look at that. You talk like you're tough, but all you'll ever be is useless." Her favorite word, that was. She turned, grinning at her accomplishment, and began to make her way back home. I looked at my hand, and smiled maliciously. I still held the rock in my tightly clenched fist. I stood up. My blood was boiling, and I started to breathe heavily. My heart beat unevenly, and my thoughts raced through my head so I was dizzy. I felt like I would explode, I was so furious.

I never let my anger out, that is, until then.

I sprinted, rock in hand, at her. Before she could even turn around to the noise of my quick footsteps, I had her hair in my free fist. I yanked her head back until her neck was exposed. I lifted the rock, and slashed it across her neck as deep as it could go. I watched, a rather insane look in my eyes, as the blood began to spill. She fell over onto her back after stumbling for a while. I knelt down beside her, and screamed as I brought the rock down onto her torso. Over, over, and over, until there were exactly seven bloody gashes across her heart. One for each year of my life she destroyed. I watched as the light left her eyes, a dark smile on my blood-stained face. I laughed, quietly at first. It was more like a bark than a laugh. Then it grew louder and louder, until I was doubled over, clenching my fists around the rock. I stood up and kicked her side viciously until she rolled off the bridge, and into the running river beneath. I threw the rock down to her, yelling victoriously. I felt like I should rid the skin that came in contact with her of her disgusting touch. I wanted to scrape it raw until it bled if I had to. At that moment, I wondered what it would be like to have a sister whose touch I didn't want to rid myself of, whose presence I didn't dread, whose every waking moment of life I didn't wish would be erased. Then I realized that a person like that would never exist.

I looked up at the dark, still sky, and at the full, bright moon shining down on me. Prosperity and happiness really _does_ come along with that kind of weather.

"You murdered your own sister," Kotake chimed in suddenly. "You're no better than you claim. That is why you find the real Ganondorf so revolting, because he reminds you of yourself at that time. A psychotic murderer."

I shook my head. "Try killing _your_ sister. You will find it rather rewarding, to do away with the downfall of your life." My voice was flat. To be honest, I didn't much care about that anymore. What's done is done, and I was pleased with the outcome. It didn't hurt my mother. I told her that she ran away and would never come home. A bonus for me; everybody hated my sister even more. I wasn't alone, even though alone is so much better.

"You're still insane deep down, and you know it. You are no better than Ganondorf, _or_ your sister."

I began tugging at my hands. "I will ring your hideous throat, hag, just wait. I know all of this is your fault. You said you've been watching me. You caused everything to happen that led me here. You dammed my family, and now you've gotten to me. Tell me, why am I so valuable to you? What is it that you want? "

"We only do this for Ganondorf. They are his wishes, not ours. But it is rather amusing to see you go completely insane now and again." Koume shrugged her fat shoulders, dismissing the matter.

I smirked. "So why does he want me so badly? What purpose do I have?"

"You're a pretty little thing. Haven't you ever noticed everybody staring?" Kotake said. I sort of had; I thought it was because I looked scary, like I was about to kill somebody. That's what my sister told me.

_How accurate._

"As much as we hate to admit it, you are probably the most beautiful Gerudo since the great Din herself."

"Oh, and us," Koume cackled with her sister.

"Thank you, I guess." I rolled my eyes for the first time in years. I never cared how I looked. Besides, I thought my sister was right, about me being so hideous. Although it conflicted entirely with my strong opinion on her being ridiculously stupid and naive, I somehow believed what she said about _me._ Nothing else.

"Kotake, I think we should let her go now. Let's leave her with all of the evil she so wishes to banish from herself."

"Excellent idea, Koume!" Kotake walked toward me.

"Enjoy your pathetic life. And remember, you can't kill everybody you don't like." She grinned at me.

"Oh yeah?" I started trying to pick up the axe rather than escape from it.

And I was suddenly right back where I started. I looked up at the Spirit Temple.

I didn't sleep that night. I stayed at the Spirit Temple, even though as soon as I walked through the entrance, I felt sick to my stomach. I just climbed back up to the roof, staring at everything around me for a good few minutes before moving onto the next sight. It was all different. There were crows flying through the warm night air, cawing at each other, and exploring the gorgeous area. Tears stopped streaming down my flushed face a bit before dawn. I saw guards walk in and out of the dune-encompassed Colossus, most likely searching for me. I think the crows may have sensed my despair. They never cawed at me to alert the guards. They came as close as they wanted, looked at me with compassion in their beady eyes, and flew away. I watched them in awe, listening to the wind. They seemed to be so blissfully unaware of the rest of the world. They were free to fly away from their troubles, as quickly as their minds could change. But, enough about the lucky birds. I needed to leave this place before I ran into Koume and Kotake again. I was in no mood for the rest of my punishment.

I swooped down onto a ledge once the last guard left, and waited in the shadows until I heard the first wolf howl at the half moon. I thought back to when I was very young. About how unaffected my thoughts were. I believed what I knew was right, not what I thought was cool. My thoughts were completely uninfluenced. I was very happy when I was about four, before I felt responsible to take care of my mother. I didn't have such tired eyes when I was an infant.

I started off to home once again, getting lost a few times. Once I finally made it back to the Fortress, I ignored the glares from suspicious women and left for Gerudo Valley. I scaled the side of the canyon until I reached the top of the falls, and waited watching Ganondorf with his new escort tramp on their horses across the thin plank leading over the pond and back from Hyrule.

Ganondorf was not always evil, this I knew. He really seemed to have really cared about the Gerudo having a stable base. The witches have brainwashed him to play off his ambition as evil and power-hungry. His aura was dark now, and to be honest, this whole situation terrified me. He told me that his mother died while in the witches' care. I thought this no coincidence: the male of the century fallen into the wrong hands could be as disastrous as those terrible hags could make it. And Ganondorf was now an ambitious, albeit completely evil, King of the Gerudo.

I stood up, and walked along the side of the canyon until I reached the Fortress again. I watched the gray clouds move across the black night sky, until I noticed that Ganondorf was sending out a search party for me. I quickly jumped down into the drop prisoner's cell. If they found me, they could not accuse me of trying to escape, since I was 'here the entire time'. I silently made it back into the Fortress, and since there were guards on patrol, I walked through as innocently as possible. They seemed to be reassured that I wasn't on the verge of leaving. What was the point, anyway? Ganondorf was right, they would accuse me of treason for the smallest thing, and I wasn't about to get another beating for going against the King. I felt that I would rather stay and not fight for myself than leave. There was nothing left to fight for. I was living for Ganondorf to have me around. Once I was brainwashed, I probably wouldn't remember anything anyway. At least I'd be happy again.

I walked to the library, searching for a book on Hylian dialect. Knowing about Ganondorf's plan to plunder and pillage Hyrule Castle completely gave me this stupid idea. If I would be taken along like he said, I wanted to study the language. I had nothing better to do anyhow, and very little time to do it.

I had my eyes glued to the smudged text, trying to soak in as many verb conjugations and nouns as possible. I had never learned to read properly, so it was especially difficult. Besides, all of the words sounded ridiculous and barbaric. Hylian was a strange language. Its sentences were all backwards! None of it flowed, and it sounded very harsh and informal. After learning how to say hello, which sounded like "thirty-six" in Gerudo, and some form of insult that sounded like "alcove", I felt like I was nodding off. The sun was up, so I couldn't allow myself to doze off until later.

_Good luck, _my mind told me. _Now_ it decides to speak up?!

I studied more until I knew how to say more. I focused on learning verbs first. I figured that would be most beneficial out of adjectives or nouns. After the sun changed from straight outside one window to straight outside another one parallel, I decided to stop. I knew how to say the words help, stay, run, go, leave, speak, be, know, and some nouns, like ocarina. I figured that I could find something better to do...Like sticking a dull knife through my heart.

_Psychotic. The real me is back._

After days of studying that ugly language, I finally got word of when Ganondorf's little plan would be executed.

"Tomorrow," Mita said. This was the first time I had spoken to her since I was finally let in on the huge secret.

"Are you going?" I asked. I had to try to act normal, so she wouldn't go crazy on me again. I had to look like I wasn't intimidated. Which I wasn't... It was _Mita._

"No, but you are. So I suggest you brush up on your skills before you leave."

"I'll be fine," I said, my eyes drifting downward. I didn't want to hurt any innocent people, certainly not when it helped Ganondorf out. I had to think of something.

The next day, I was saddled up beside Ganondorf on the way to the western wall of Hyrule Castle, just like our first trip together. I thought of that night, when he admitted that he wasn't a horrible person, and how happy I was with him...

"Are you sure that you know the plan?" He asked me for the hundredth time.

"Yes. I sneak to the Princess's bed chambers, kill her nursemaid, steal the ocarina, and bring it to you." I kept looking straight. It was almost dawn, and the sky was purple and cold. That just made me even more on edge.

"Good." Ganondorf kept his gaze straight too. On each side of us were three guards. In total, we were fourteen, the smallest number we could manage while still properly equipped. We were to sneak over the western wall of the Market Place, while Ganondorf rode in on the bridge with two guards.

I wasn't sure what I would do. _To obey his royal highness, or not to obey his royal highness? _

After slowly creeping along the path, we dismounted our horses and left them tied to trees. I assembled with the ten other guards, while Ganondorf continued onward with the two others.

"Is everybody ready?" I asked quietly. Everybody nodded. None of them looked nervous at all. They had done things like this millions of times.

"Good. Five of you go first, then I'll go, and then the rest follow close behind. Nadirah, you first, then Takyian, Amineh, Rawiyah, and Inmatreni."

Nadirah began climbing up the side, and the others followed. Once Inmatreni was far up, I grabbed a brick, and hauled myself up. I could feel my scimitars slipping from my belt, but I kept climbing. My hands got very sore very quickly, and the wall was so tall that by the time I reached the top I nearly fell back over into the moat. I looked down at the guards sneaking behind a building, and in the distance I could almost see Ganondorf and his guards. I felt so inept compared to them: They didn't break a sweat during this whole process, whereas I was on the verge of exhaustion.

I hoped down from the ridge of the wall, and steadied myself before taking off. We snuck through the alleyways, past where I slept for three months, until we reached the western wall of Hyrule Castle. I signaled for the guards behind me to stop. I peered out from behind a wall and saw Ganondorf's guards waiting by the entrance. The one on the left saw me, and nodded for me to advance. I nodded back, and sidestepped to the guards. My brain was almost shut off; I was in attack mode.

"I'll go first." Nobody objected, so I began to climb once more. Hylian guards really are stupid. I was quite an obvious sight, dressed in all red against a pure white brick wall. I grinned and hopped down into a shadowy area of the courtyard entrance. I was expecting a guard to be waiting for me here, of all places, but I suppose the Hylians prefer show to logic and efficiency.

I waited for the first five guards, and began sneaking beside the walls to the main part of the castle entrance. I barely had to sneak, because the guards were so airy. They weren't even looking for anybody. I listened to the dewy grass beneath my feet, and then kept walking towards the castle, darting between full trees and tall bushes.

I stopped at a wooden door disguised by a shady willow tree.

"Does anybody know where the Princess's bedchambers are?" I asked shyly.

"Somewhere in the west wing," Maste said.

"Thanks." I opened the door, and walked into a dark corner of the castle. There were hardly any guards, so I just walked into the open, while the others stayed close behind. I was starting to get very nervous. I looked down at the blue rug beneath me, and then a pair of regal doors at the end of the corridor caught my attention. The glossy wood reflected in the light of the stain glass windows that served as a ceiling in the easy morning sun, and the gold door handles shone equally as soft.

"I think that's it," Aeshiyana said, nodding to the brilliant doors.

"Stay here. If anybody comes...kill them." Then I opened the door and spun into the room, shutting it behind me in one swift motion.

I looked forward into the large room, and saw a little blonde girl with huge blue eyes sitting up beneath heavy purple blankets on her bed, getting awakened by her Sheikah nursemaid. I assumed her to be Princess Zelda. The nursemaid was crouched beside her, but when she saw me, she stood up and drew a long, thin blade from nowhere. The little girl gasped and jumped up, running behind the Sheikah with complete trust and faith.

I put my hands up a bit, stepping to the side while the Sheikah paced closer with that freakish weapon.

"You need leave!" I said, aware of my broken sentence. I couldn't think with all of my nerves, even after hours of studying.

The Sheikah kept on coming closer with a confused look on her pointed face, so I said, "Ganondorf is evil! You need to leave, soon!"

The Sheikah stopped, and suddenly put her weapon away while keeping eye contact. "Why should a trust a Gerudo, clearly of high rank, most likely to be associated with Ganondorf, who arrives unannounced, with several weapons at her side?" She growled.

I saw the little girl step from behind her nursemaid, and suddenly become half excited, and remaining half worried.

"Listen to her, Impa! I told you that man was evil!"

"Yes, listen! I tell the truth!" I said, putting my hands down. "He is by your King, Ganondorf needs one ocarina. You should go, at once!" I hoped my Hylian was understandable. I hardly even understood what Impa said earlier. "He should come and take her later, because that ocarina!" I pointed to Princess Zelda, who cowered behind Impa, blue eyes darting from my face to Impa's and back again.

"Impa! She is right! Please believe her! She seems a good person...She seems to be of high eminence with the Goddesses!" said Zelda, tugging at Impa's arm. Impa looked like something completely obvious had dawned on her. I didn't quite understand what that meant.

"Thank you, Sixth of The Six," was all Impa said before darting away with Zelda's hand in hers. Zelda managed to grab a little blue instrument I assumed to be the ocarina off of her bed stand in the rush. They ran to the doors parallel to the ones behind me, just as I heard voices far off. One of them was Ganondorf's. I heard crashing, screaming, and Din knows what else. Then I heard fighting right outside the door. I ran after the princess and Impa, hoping to escape.

_I am so dead... What the hell is a "Sixth of the Six?"_

Just as I opened the door, I ran straight into Ganondorf. He looked very angry, and had blood on his face and hands. I looked up at him, horrified.

"Where are they?" He asked me, looking around. "Did you get the ocarina?"

"I-"

"You let them escape?!" He asked, getting angrier every second.

"They left-" I tried again. I was cut short by a cheap blow to the face. I opened my eyes again and was looking at the tall stain-glass ceiling. I saw stars for a moment, blurring the patterns of the Golden Goddesses in their jagged patterns, and then lifted my head to see Ganondorf ordering two guards fighting Hylians to find his horse and bring it to him. They quickly killed the guards, and ran off down the corridor.

_I'm alive!_

"Do you have any idea what you've done?!"

"Yes, I do. I let them escape with the ocarina." I looked at him, and could not believe that I had the same lump in my throat as yesterday.

Ganondorf became even more furious and said, "You did this on purpose?!"

"Yes." I repeated. "I committed treason against you. _So kill me._"

"I can't kill you, Nabooru! Don't you understand that?!"

"Why can't you?!" I asked, slowly standing up. The lump was gone, and had been replaced with raw heat and harsh words poured out. Never did I think that I would be the one yelling at him. "What is it that I don't understand? If you prefer, punish me, torture me." I stepped closer to him. I wasn't afraid of him. "Do what you must. If that means taking my life, so be it."

_Don't encourage him..._

"You will be punished," He said firmly, finally regaining some composure. He looked about for any guards, I suppose, and said, "You don't seem to comprehend that I don't merely want you around, I need you around. I thought that killing you would be a better option, but that failed. I'm sorry, but you may not know why just yet."

I was pondering what that could possibly mean when he grabbed my arm, and pulled me closer to him. All I could do at this point was look up at him, bold as ever. I didn't care what he did at this point. This was all over, as far as I was concerned.

"We'll just see what happens with the ocarina." He looked down at me, and I looked up at him, moving my eyes from past his shoulder to meet his livid stare.

"Do your worst, then. No way will I let you have it. You can do what you like to me, but you'll never have your way with Hyrule. We will not let this happen." We, meaning Link and me. Even if he would never help...

Ganondorf chuckled in a belittling way. "Who is "We?"; The princess, the Sheikah, and that pathetic little kid? What could _you_ possible do? Remember, you're only my second in command. You answer to me. You do as I say or face the consequences."

_Why does he need me so badly? I thought it was because I was "pretty"...What else am I really around here for?_

It seemed as though a more important conversation was being tossed between our eyes. If only I could understand it. Something told me that both of us were through with the way we were acting towards each other. We both wanted it back to normal, and we both knew it would never happen with Koume and Kotake still around. The real Ganondorf was showing through again, trying desperately to return, and I was trying to force the rest away. But, despite my strongest efforts, both of us gave up. The evil Ganondorf engulfed the real Ganondorf once more, and all efforts were, and always will be, in vain, leaving both of us furious at each other, if nothing else.

"You're finished here." He shoved me back, but I didn't loose my composure. I frowned and watched him go. I watched all the chaos ensue, and couldn't think about anything more. I just stood staring at the cluster of enemy guards in front of me, until one got too close for comfort. I pulled out my twin blades, and began weaving them in and out of hypnotizing patterns until the guard stopped staring and tried to fight back with his lame spear. He tried to hit me with the flat end first, and all I could do was restrain a laugh and back flip out of it. Once I landed, I crouched down, and jumped up spinning with my blades extended. I landed with either end at the fool's neck. He cowered before me, and didn't move. I smirked before leaving him on the ground with a gash across his side. He was rolling about in tears, and I almost laughed. _Stupid Hylians. Don't they know better that to go up against a Gerudo?_

I ran off to find the Princess. Just as I opened a door to my side, I saw a white horse whiz by me, Zelda and Impa on it's back. Zelda looked back at me and almost smiled, but remembered what was actually happening. Her life was being destroyed, and technically, I was one of the people to blame. Then, I saw Ganondorf ride past me on his crazy black horse, gaining speed quickly and almost right on their tail. I had to think fast: The bow and arrows strapped to my back would take much to long to ready. So, I stepped out from the doorway into the grassy front of the Castle, and threw one scimitar after him, slashing his horse's left leg. The horse almost flipped Ganondorf off it's back in shock.

_Damn! _I wasn't aiming for the horse.

When Ganondorf turned around to see a culprit, I ducked back into the door way just in time. I looked around to see if anybody saw what I did. They were all still inside the Castle with the rest of the guards. If anything, that would buy Zelda and Impa some time. I peered back out and saw my scimitar lying in the dust of the path, blood at the tip.

I was amazed that I managed to get out of this situation unscathed, except for getting hit. Then I dropped the thought, remembering that this situation was far from over.

I began making my way back to my horse, which was fastened to a tree beside the western wall. I needed to stop Ganondorf any way I could. As much as I wanted to let it go and believe that Zelda and Impa would be fine, I knew that it was still up to me to do something more. Reality stood in the way of relief, as usual. I found my horse, saddled up, and took off at full speed after Ganondorf, getting my bow and arrow set in advance. He was already out the drawbridge by the time I came barreling through the market place, where everybody was running and screaming in that stupid language. I pulled back on the reins and came to a screeching halt on my frantic horse. She was stamping and trying to run forward against my tight pull. I saw Ganondorf stopped on his horse, talking to Link, of all people. Immediately, I was twice as worried. Link didn't stand a chance against him! I got off my horse and ran toward them. My legs quickly rebelled, telling me that it was no use. There was nothing I could do. No matter what I tried, it was all out of my control. I saw Ganondorf blast Link with some weird ball of magic, and fall to the ground. I felt my blood and muscles heat up in protest. Soon after that, Ganondorf sped away, heading south. He was gone. He, Impa, and Zelda would soon meet, I could feel it.

But that certainly doesn't mean that I wanted to feel it.


	11. Chapter 11

**Author's Note: This is the first chapter written by me. Hopefully I've been able to keep Nabooru in character, as well as the original tone of the piece. Comments are appreciated, of course!**

I got hammered back into the present as I felt something strike my already injured head. With one hand to my temple and the other on my scimitar, I whirled around to see one of the Hylian guards waving his spearhead in my face, gibbering something that probably wouldn't have made sense even if I spoke his tongue fluently.

Such a contrast; my calm, doomed eyes looking into his wild, panicked stare. Probably he'd just learned of his King's death. Or maybe he just got wrapped up in all the chaos and struck out at the first enemy he could find. His countrymen still ran around us like headless Cuccos, the concept of an emergency evacuation probably never having entered their minds.

I felt a bit of pity, like one might toward a baby bird about to be swallowed by a snake. They were a weak, pathetic race, but that didn't mean I enjoyed watching them get annihilated by a force beyond their imagination. I calmly parried his attack, then nearly got clobbered by his weak thrust as I spied Link racing across the town square, ocarina in hand. _What the heck does he think he's going to accomplish with that?_

Nadirah passed in front of him, blocking him from view. Seeing me, she called out, "What orders?"

_Damned if I know. Zelda's gone, Ganondorf's gone, with this place in a state of chaos like a kicked anthill._ "Mission's accomplished. Let's head back to the Fortress," I yelled back. I doubted any of us would be useful for opening magic doors. Not to mention the fact that Ganondorf had run off for who knew how long, chasing somebody that no longer had what he wanted. The more time I could give Link to do what he needed to do, the better.

In just a few minutes the rest of the group assembled next to me, the remaining Hylians scattering as if we carried some putrid contagion. "Where is Ganondorf?" Amineh demanded.

"Out tying up some loose ends. I have no idea how long it will take, and we can't help him, so we might as well regroup back at the Fortress. We've accomplished what we set out to do, so let's go."

We set off, the burning wreck of the castle looming behind us. I did not want to look back at the destruction we had wrought in so little time, a celebratory bonfire for a festival of the mad King. _I just want to get back home, and get it over with, whatever he and those two bags of bones are going to do to me. Great Din above, please let my role in this end._

No such luck. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a dark shape move swiftly across Hyrule Field, and stared in surprise as Ganondorf's horse galloped back toward the castle. _Fuck! Did he already catch up to Zelda and realize that she doesn't have the ocarina? Does he know that Link has it?_

I sharply reined in my horse, an image of the little princess's corpse flickering in my mind. "Keep going!" I barked at the other women, and jerked my horse around without any explanation. _Well, that's one good aspect of the brainwashing_, I thought darkly to myself as I glanced over my shoulder, making sure they didn't follow. _They don't question me, either._

I was maybe five hundred yards from the gates when it happened. It is very hard for me to explain just exactly _what_ happened. For the briefest of moments, I felt as if both the earth and sky had split apart. It was so real, as if the entire world had actually fractured in front of me and the scattered barbs sliced right through my heart. And then, in the blink of an eye, everything was relatively normal except for me falling off my horse in a state of shock.

I had just picked myself up off the ground when a horrible, horrible voice split my skull and drove me back to my knees with my hands to my head. _"Nabooru!"_

"What?!" I demanded of the empty air, unsure who or what I was speaking to.

The voice, Ganondorf's voice, spoke with such forceful accomplishment that my heart stalled. _"Nabooru, come to the temple! The temple in the town square!"_

My mother was fond of saying, "Never say things can't get worse. Things always find a way." Such disturbing wisdom. My mind and body beginning to give out from all the turmoil, I stumbled over the broken drawbridge and back into the town. _Temple, temple…what temple? Oh, here it is_. I walked on unchallenged, all the people gone by this time and the burning houses now reaching their stone foundations.

I had no desire to go in and see whatever new nightmare fate had in store. Yet I felt compelled to enter, fate's stony hand guiding my steps.

I walked through the open double doors into a wide atrium. It was empty save for a red carpet leading to a kind of altar at the far end. As I got closer, I could see three jewels of red, green, and blue placed in settings on the altar. The altar was dusty, the jewels were not. _Are these the Spiritual Stones?_ I raised my head to see the royal symbol, the three-triangle seal, shining above a doorway that gave the impression it usually stood blocked.

What else could I do? I walked in, and braced for the worst.

There he stood, in the middle of the room, staring at his fist. Ganondorf's head jerked up as I stepped closer, and as his gaze hit me I felt a force like a physical blow. Triumph, animosity, and something I could not identify raced through me from him. If his aura had been dark before, it was now the color of a black cat in a dark cave at midnight. And yet, he seemed…calmer, though still frightening, as if he stood confident that no threat could hold him back now.

He held up his fist and showed me the back of his hand. A golden triangle shone etched into his skin, like a demon tattoo. _He did it._

I felt surprised that I wasn't more shocked or frightened by this revelation. I suppose once you finally hit bottom, there is nowhere else to go. A feeling of numbness, apathy almost, spread over me. As he stepped to my side, he said, "Nabooru, despite your foolishness, I have accomplished my goal. Apologize, swear loyalty to me, and I will forgive your transgressions."

I said nothing, just staring at the floor. _Can I die _now_?_

"Nabooru, why do you continue to resist what is best for you and your people?" He said this in such a kind, heartfelt voice that my head jerked up – yes, even now – with a small glimmer of hope that perhaps there was still some scrap of him left. Yet when I looked into his eyes – such a contrast! – like an eclipse, the influence of the Triforce of Power completely blocking out the remaining light of his soul. I stared openly, having never seen something so empty before, lost in a dark vortex.

"Don't you see?" he said in that same voice, so horribly twisted now that I could see what was behind it. "With this power, I can stamp out the Royal Idiots and secure the future of the Gerudo. Now _we_ will be its guardians, _we_ will reap the benefits of the bountiful land, as_ I _have taken the place of King. All you have to do is obey, and all will be well"

"Of course," he went on, and here his mood darkened, "it seems the Goddesses don't like abrupt changes, and therefore my quest is not over." He showed me the back of his hand again, and I noticed that one of the three triangles that made up the royal symbol shone brighter than the others. "If the individual who touches the Triforce is not _pure of heart_" – here he sneered – "it will split into three pieces, and that individual must gather them again to gain its full power. But Power, of course, is the strongest of all three; Wisdom and Courage are less important. Wisdom without Power is mere wishful thinking; Courage without Power is reckless stupidity."

I could have said something about Power in the hands of cowardly idiots, but I knew nothing I said would make a difference at this point.

"I have a good idea who has the Wisdom piece, and a guess at who holds Courage…yet I am unable to determine where either of them are at this point," he said more to himself than to me. At this point I realized that Link – living or dead – was not in the room. _Didn't he place the Spiritual Stones? Why did he come here, if not to keep the Triforce away from Ganondorf?_

Ganondorf turned his attention to me, his expression grave. "Now, this is where you come in, the reason why I could not kill you. There are six holy places scattered throughout Hyrule, and it is my understanding that six Sages are supposed to reside there. I don't understand their connection to the power of the gods at this point. But I do know that I can't have them used against me." He placed an icy hand on my shoulder. "When you survived all those trials, I knew you had to be one of them. It was not your fate to die. The Goddesses have another role for you to play."

_Six of the Sixth._ I dropped my gaze back to the floor, his huge metal boots contrasting sharply with my soft, small shoes. "And what is this role?" I asked softly.

"You will guard the Spirit Temple. If either Triforce Bearer enters, you will kill him or her and bring the body – and their Triforce piece – to me."

My mind began working in spite of my apathy. _There are five other Sages out there, Sages he doesn't trust. He thinks he knows who the other Bearers are…is Link one of them? What about Zelda or Impa?_

I felt his hand clench on my shoulder, and had the eerie premonition that he had read my mind. "Forget any thoughts of betrayal now," he said in a low voice more dangerous than any I had ever heard. "I will show you what will happen if you do, what lies behind the Power of the gods." With this he lightly touched my forehead.

Once again, I cannot fully describe what happened next. I can only say I received a vision of such suffering, such destruction, that the end of the world itself sounds like a hollow, trite concept. Once I had stopped retching and forced my wobbling legs to function, just like that, the kind voice returned.

"Nabooru, do you realize now that there is no need to fight me? There never was…everything that has happened, has happened for a reason. Nabooru," he said softly as he tilted my head upward, "put aside your outrage, your concern for worthless fools, the tragedies of your past. A new age is dawning. I have chosen you to join me, by my side, to usher in this new reality. You will see…it will be glorious." He bent his head down and pressed his lips against mine. Not that I ever had any choice.

So I kissed him. Not the blackened crust that stood before me with a heart of ash; the real Ganondorf, who had once been human, who had at one point actually laughed, loved, and lived.

I kissed him good-bye.


	12. Chapter 12

I could do little more than follow orders at this point

I could do little more than follow orders at this point. And yet, a tiny kernel of rebellion still resided within my heart. Ganondorf told me to take what I needed from the Fortress and remain on guard in the Spirit Temple – regardless of how many days, weeks, months, or years I had to spend there. After picking up a few meager possessions, I found Mita, still brainwashed.

"What are the orders?" She spoke like an automaton. Her words and tone gave me the creepy-crawlies, as if I had a centipede crawling up my spine.

"There are still some holdouts who refuse to recognize Ganondorf as King," I told her. "You will probably come across at least one who is a strong warrior, and will pose a danger to us if anyone but Ganondorf fights him." I was talking about the Triforce Bearers, of course, though obviously I was not one hundred percent sure who they would turn out to be. "For this reason, if you find any intruders, you are to capture them and keep them alive. If they escape, give them free run of the fortress, under the pretext that they've earned our respect. Then send a message to me and I'll get word to Ganondorf. If they want to head for the Spirit Temple, all the better; I'll take care of it."

She nodded, not even thinking about how weird this must sound. I hoped this little loophole would help Link - if he was still alive – figure out that our people could no longer think for themselves. I doubted that a bearer of Courage or Wisdom would injure innocents being manipulated by mind control. This way, he wouldn't hurt us, and we wouldn't hurt him. After that, I headed out over the Wasteland for my exile in the Temple.

Believe it or not, my life improved ever so slightly. It sounds surprising, but there is a very good reason for this; once you hit rock bottom, there is nowhere to go but up.

I won't pretend it was pleasant in any way. I was stuck in the Spirit Temple with only those two hags for company, except for a few occasions I'll explain in a moment. Still, it was a step up from my previous predicament, for a number of reasons.

I spent the first few weeks hiding in corners, dreading the moment when the two of them would hijack my mind. As hopeless as the situation was, I did not like the idea of waking up one day to find I had slain the other two Bearers, and therefore helped plunge the world into darkness. I secretly considered suicide first, and if Ganondorf had any indication of this, he didn't show it. In fact, I came very close to ending it all anyway, spending hours with the blade of my scimitar at my wrist and trying to muster up the nerve to do it.

Praise the Goddesses that I didn't.

I had fallen asleep, and woke rudely to the sound of loud bickering. I started in surprise as I caught sight of both Koume and Kotake in the middle of what would be an excruciatingly common routine.

"It _is_ your hair, and I can prove it." Kotake held up a single, slender gray hair in one hand, waving it in her sister's face. In her other hand she held a half-eaten portion of stonebread, simple food the Gerudo brought on long journeys.

Koume huffed, turning her head to the side. "Fool. Is it going to take you another 400 years to remember we're twins? Your hair is exactly the same as mine. It must have fallen in your food when you were eating." She caught sight of me sitting on the ground. "Look, you've woken up the little doggie. Now she's going to cry and want out."

Kotake laughed, showing blackened teeth. "She is like a spoiled pet, isn't she? Gets all the best food, and the Master's too soft to discipline her properly."

I picked up my scimitar, hoping I could goad them into killing me. "There's no collar round my neck yet!" I leaped forward and swiped at the nearest witch.

"Silly girl." They slipped away like smoke and reformed again several feet above my head. "Bad dog, barking at nothing." Both disappeared, and I stood there stupidly, wondering why they had simply thrown insults and nothing more.

The answer to this mystery came a few weeks later. A guard left rations for the three of us at the temple door, and even if I sat there all day and all night, the basket the guard held was always nearly empty. She kept promising to bring something more, but never did. At first I thought Ganondorf was attempting to starve me into submission. But then I heard his voice echoing throughout the chamber where the two hags lived, a strange echo to it as if he were speaking in a tunnel.

"Did you think I wouldn't notice?" He demanded angrily, a rhetorical question. I poked my head in ever so slightly, to find the pair bowing before a mere image, not the real thing. "Remember, Nabooru's status as a Sage connects her to the Triforce, and therefore to me. She has a very important role to play, and I won't allow you to interfere with it!"

"Forgive us," Kotake whined. "We merely thought that she was getting fat, and you would find her more appealing if…"

"Enough!" He snapped. "Do you think I believe this nonsense? My power far exceeds your own, so don't think you can wheedle your way out of things like you used to. Our ancestors' magic is just a bag of silly tricks compared to the Power of the Gods. I don't want to have this discussion ever again!" And with that, the image disappeared.

I dodged out of sight as the pair walked to the door, grumbling. "He's gotten uppity now, Sister," Kotake muttered.

"I have a feeling he's not going to make good on his promise," Koume griped.

"Ah! To be young again, without draining our power! Surely that wouldn't be too much trouble for the man who holds the Power of the Gods."

"What a way to treat the ones who raised him!"

I allowed myself the slightest smile. They had finally realized they had created a monster. They couldn't touch me now; Ganondorf was the one in control, and considered me on equal ground with his former co-conspirators.

So the next day, I waited once again for the guard to show up with the basket of rations, and to my surprise I found Hylian wine and salted beef mixed in with the drought-corn and stonebread. The two hags found me sitting happily at the foot (or tail, rather) of the temple guardian, draining the last of the wine.

"I thought I smelled a rat," Kotake muttered, staring hungrily at the empty bottle.

I burped luxuriously. "Let's consider us even now, shall we?" My words slurred so badly that I could barely make myself understood, and they left in a huff.

I didn't attempt anything after that. We split the food in three equal portions, and kept our distance from each other. None of us wanted to do anything that would bring the newly crowned King of Everything down on our heads.

So began a long, excruciating period of inexplicable boredom. I asked the guard for some books from the fortress, but obviously Ganondorf was not impressed with my earlier self-education.

Every so often he would summon me to his new base. After the first visit I made sure I saved up any wine for the trip. Thankfully, except for the first time, I don't remember any of the nights I spent at that place.

I came expecting to see Hyrule Castle more or less intact. It was made of stone, after all, and quite well-made at that; I'd figured he'd toss out the charred furniture and settle in. I think my face almost folded over itself when I stood there, completely dumbfounded. The entire castle was gone, with a bit of wall here or there to prove it had once existed. In its place floated a giant dark monstrosity of a castle, over a huge lake of boiling lava. I only wish I were kidding about any of this.

As I stood staring open-mouthed at this dubious sample of architecture, a stone bridge materialized out of nowhere, obviously an invitation to come in. I don't think I've ever been so tempted to run off in the other direction, and that includes the incident in the Temple of Time.

Inside was much worse. I hadn't really expected him to be a master interior decorator, but the motif of death's-heads and Triforces actually made me laugh. I had no trouble moving around, but I could tell by the proliferation of strange contraptions that the place was usually well guarded. Great hideous creatures, which looked like they had been pulled out of Gerudo tales about mythological monsters, also guarded the building and pointed me in the direction I needed to go.

I stepped through a large entryway, the décor abruptly changing from dungeon nightmare to a carpeted stairway, brightly lit through stained-glass windows. I wondered if the light was an illusion of sorcery as well, because perpetual roiling stormclouds hovered outside. As I climbed the stairway – more stairs than I've ever seen in my life – a rumbling sound grew louder and louder, assaulting my eardrums. I can't fully describe the sound; the closest I can come is a dying cat in a thunderstorm.

Finally at the top of the tower, massive double-doors opened, and a blast of noise nearly threw me back down the stairs. I clamped my hands over my ears and staggered into the huge room, where a single person sat banging out a horrible tune on an extravagant monstrosity, made of wood and metal tubes.

Ganondorf stopped the assault on my ears, turned around, and stood. I noticed he wore a cape, something we Gerudo had always seen as impractical. They get caught on too many things at inopportune times.

His face split in a grin. "You're here!" he exclaimed, with the air of one getting a visit from a long-lost relative. But instead of stepping forward and greeting me properly, he motioned toward the mammoth noise machine. "Isn't it beautiful? I salvaged it from the old castle."

"It's very…unusual," I managed to spit out, my hands cramped up from being pressed over my ears.

He ignored my grimaces and motioned for me to follow him into another room, one with parchment strewn about on tables as if a windstorm had blown it in through the window. He rifled through them a bit, then pointed out some scribbles of his that I couldn't read. "The Princess has not left Hyrule," he informed me, "but I can't find her, and I've looked everywhere. I have the feeling she might be wearing some kind of disguise. Have you met anyone new lately?"

"No, nobody's come to the temple at all except for the guard that brings us food." The Gerudo used to make yearly pilgrimages to the Spirit Temple, but that changed once Ganondorf shifted all worship to himself.

"The strangest thing," he muttered more to himself than to me, "is that when I came into the Temple of Time, there was no sign of that boy anywhere. He had placed the stones, and his foot prints were clearly marked in the dusty floor. They ended at the plinth…and I found out that it held a sword at one point." Ganondorf scowled at the blotchy Hylian parchment, probably also salvaged from the old castle. "It was a powerful sword, said to have the 'power to banish evil'." He turned his head and gave me a malicious smile. "Silly poetic nonsense. Don't you think that he would have used it? But he disappeared. Maybe he wasn't as innocent as he looked?"

I could do nothing but shrug. I had to admit that if _I_ had a magic sword, I wouldn't have run off with it; I would have taken a swing at Ganondorf's neck. "Maybe he thought you were somewhere else?"

"He knew where I was going. Besides, that sword must have been as big as he was. I doubt he could have carried it anywhere." He tossed the parchment back on the table. "Well…enough of that." He faced me again and gave me a look I had been dreading since he summoned me here. "I'm sure we're both tired of work. How about a little fun?"

It suffices to say that what was fun for him was not for me. I made sure I brought wine along for the other times he summoned me; those nights at least I remember nothing about.

Seven long years I spent in that temple. Most of the time I just sat outside, on one of the outstretched hands of the Sand Goddess, where Link had watched me sink into the ground. I sat where he had stood, and wondered what had happened to the poor kid. Him and Zelda. If they knew what was good for them, they would flee to another country. Sometimes I daydreamed about escaping, meeting up with them in Termina or someplace else. _I never thought I'd see you again! How have you been? Me? Oh, you know, seven years of service to a madman and a couple of crazy witches for company, the usual…_

Toward the end I began to go a little crazy myself, resorting to something we call 'jewel hunting'. It's a tactic that Gerudo prisoners of war would use, to stay sane over long periods of time shut up in Hylian dungeons. I would take a bracelet or earring from my clothing, stand in the middle of the room, then spin around with my eyes closed until I got dizzy. Keeping my eyes shut, I'd throw the bauble, then get down on my hands and knees to search for it. Kotake and Kotake found this very funny. They would come to watch, and give a big cheer just as I threw the jewel. I didn't care; their yells would drown out the clatter of the jewel on the floor, and would take me longer to find it.

Toward the end, I became resigned to my role as a living ghost of an abandoned temple. So of course I was completely unprepared when everything changed…


	13. Chapter 13

Author's Notes: Thanks for bringing to my attention the spellings of Koume and Kotake's names

**Author's Notes: Thanks for bringing to my attention the spellings of Koume and Kotake's names. There is no excuse for it, I just got lazy. But now they're in my spellcheck dictionary along with all the other Zelda names.**

**Random fact: The 'jewel hunting' thing is based off of a strategy used by Alcatraz inmates in solitary confinement.**

Seven years on, I rode out for yet another meeting with Ganondorf. The state of the country had steadily declined, but upon entering Hyrule field, I noticed that things had taken a drastic turn for the worst. A horrendous stench invaded my nostrils, a bizarre combination of brimstone and rotting vegetation. I looked up to see Death Mountain glowing with a deep red hue. The volcano had minor eruptions now and then, but always preceded by earthquakes, and I had not felt any.

As I rode next to the river I found the source of the rotten smell. The river ran maybe one-third of its usual height, yet the air felt humid, and I could find no other signs of drought. In the scummy eddies I could see dead fish, bugs, and not much else. I rode over the rotting remains of the castle drawbridge, surprised to find that I felt frightened. I'd thought I'd seen the worst, but apparently that was still to come.

Even the organ sounded worse. I was never able to recognize the various tunes he pounded out while waiting for me to come, but I could distinctly hear numerous squeaks and blurts that obviously were not on the music sheet. As I got closer to the main room, I could hear cursing as well.

Ganondorf greeted me with a scowl. "Something happen?" I asked, dreading the answer.

He glanced around with bloodshot eyes, staring at something I couldn't see. "There are…new forces at work," he said slowly. "That is the only explanation. At least one of the two Triforce Bearers has awakened…and the other sages can feel it. They are moving toward rebellion."

I hadn't felt anything different, though of course Ganondorf could have done something to ensure that the other two pieces didn't have an effect on me. Him being paranoid struck me as a more likely scenario.

"I have taken precautions, of course," he informed me with an insane smirk. "I froze the springwater in Zora's domain; their entire civilization is likely encased in ice by now."

I blinked, startled by this pronouncement, the trickling river suddenly explained. I wondered if Ruto had the sense to get out of there beforehand. "But…quite apart from all the Zora dying…how on earth are we supposed to get water?"

He waved away my concerns. "Fewer people means less demand for such things. If the fools that live in this country find it so hard to bear, they can go somewhere else. It's still more fertile than our own homeland."

"What about the Mountain?" I asked, jerking my thumb over my shoulder. "Did you do that too?"

"I did nothing to the mountain itself," he explained with relish, doubtless cherishing another crazy scheme. "I awakened Volvagia, the dragon living at the volcano's core." He frowned like a thundercloud, venom tainting his words. "The Gorons still refuse to accept me as King. They holed themselves up in their mines, but I managed to find a way to subdue them within their own home." His face split in a wide grin. "They're too afraid to do much of anything now; one false move from any of them and I can choose one at random to serve as food for the dragon."

I couldn't conceal my shudder. He found this hilarious. "A good plan, no? It must be, if even you are afraid of it." He grabbed at the pack I carried. "Did you bring any wine? There's none left in my cellars."

Thank the Goddesses that I did. Even so, he drank most of it, so I still have brief mental images of him drooling in my face.

Once back at the Temple, I had plenty of time to think (there was really nothing else to do), and reflected briefly on the fact that not one of these meetings had ever resulted in a pregnancy. I didn't really want a baby tainted with his blood (even though I was desperate for someone not insane to speak to), and it wasn't exactly the best environment to bring up a child, either. But a barren Gerudo woman is rare, and the possibility that I was infertile just added to all the insults and bad luck I had endured over the years. Before Ganondorf left he'd managed to start on the next generation, and I had to wonder why he'd never inquired.

Kotake found me one day puzzling over this in front of small mirror, staring at my protruding bones as well as my flat abdomen. If anything, she and Koume had become even _more_ nuts over the past seven years, something I'd not thought possible. "Hoping for a bun in the oven, are we, dearie?" she asked with a hint of a laugh in her voice.

"No," I stated flatly. "I endured enough as a kid; I don't want to put anyone else through that." I added more to myself than to her, "But I have to wonder…"

Koume appeared behind her, caught up in a fit of the giggles. "Wondering why there aren't any little Naboorus wandering around? It's simple, really."

I picked at a scab over one of my collarbones. "Starvation?"

"No." Kotake paused with the air of one about to drop a giant bombshell. "We took precautions. The day after that first night you spent with him, we cleaned you out. Permanently."

I froze, my blood turning to ice. "What?"

"We had a hunch you were to be a Sage, of course," Koume explained as if talking about the weather. "We didn't know at that time if you would join the others, or if Ganondorf would be able to keep you under control."

Kotake nodded. "Yes, and who knew what kind of child it would have been? A Triforce bearer, perhaps? We knew you wouldn't follow his invasion willingly. And a child born of his seed, with a Sage for a mother…why, a saga in the making! We had to ensure that it wouldn't do anything like overthrow him in heroic glory. It was just too much of a setup for us not to interfere."

I clenched my hands, my nails biting into my palms and drawing blood. I didn't even feel it, only wave after wave of rage with the realization that they had violated my body as well as my mind. "So you made me barren?" I demanded in a soft, low, strangled voice.

Koume gave me a nonchalant flick of her hand. "It's for the best, I assure you."

My last nerve snapped. I clamped my bloody fingers around Koume's neck. "You ugly, fucked-up bitch," I snarled. "I'm gonna clean out your entrails and hang you with them!"

Kotake leaped forward to help her sister and a full-tilt brawl ensued. We gouged, kicked, and bit at each other, the only thing holding us back from true murder being the knowledge that Ganondorf would hand out some punishment worse than death. They raked their needle-like nails across my face and arms, but I managed to break both their huge noses and blacken a couple eyes.

Suddenly one of the bloodsucking bats that Ganondorf had introduced into the Temple flew into the room with a resounding screech. "An intruder!" the pair shouted in unison, hopping on their brooms. I ran after them, but they flew through shortcuts I could not reach.

I had gone maybe halfway to the main entrance when they came flying back, panicked looks on their faces. Kotake grabbed my arm, simultaneously attempting to heal up the scratches and drag me back the way I came. "The intruder is very powerful," she hissed in warning as I struggled. "There's no way you'll be able to fight him like that."

The possibility the intruder was a Triforce Bearer certainly came to mind. "What's he look like?" I demanded, suspicious that they did not want me talking to him, knowing all of Ganondorf's threats were probably not enough to keep me in line.

"He's _enormous_," Koume stated, not looking at me. "Goron-like, I think. You'll need armor, lots of it. Hurry up, we're going to the sanctuary."

I felt nervous in spite of myself. Had the Goddesses chosen a Goron as a Triforce Bearer? If so, he would be a hell of a lot harder to convince that I was on his side than Link or Zelda. I hadn't seen any sign of the two since that fateful day, so I could not be sure that the hags were deceiving me.

At the entrance to the sanctuary, Kotake finally let me go. I backed up slightly, noticing the slightest glint in her eyes, unsure which danger was greater. "I think we should give her full armor, don't you?"

Koume nodded. "Yes, and a better weapon than that old scimitar. A big battle-ax would do nicely."

I scowled at them. "I don't know how to fight with a battle-ax. It's a completely different discipline."

"No worries," Kotake said with a large grin. Before I could move, they cast me once again into oblivion.

-&-

Something jarred me awake, and I fell to my knees, strangely exhausted and with the ring of metal armor surrounding me. Panting, I watched the floor swim before my eyes and struggled to raise my head, fearful of what new foe had managed to break their enchantment.

As my eyes slowly focused, I could see a young man standing in front of me. He held a large, finely forged sword, but kept it point down to show he was not a threat. He wore funny green clothing of a familiar style, and as he bent down toward me I could see recognition in his unashamedly honest face. "Nabooru? Are you all right?"

_A Hylian that speaks Gerudo? How does this guy know me? _ He had blue eyes, tired eyes…

A little fairy popped out of his hat. I can't even explain the weirdness of facing a mighty warrior with a pet fairy. "It looks like she was brainwashed, too," it said in a high, instantly irritating voice.

Finally my pulp of a brain made the connection. "…Link? Is…is that you…?" His face lit up and he nodded, happy to see I remembered him. I still had trouble comprehending this. Except for the eyes and the silly clothes, he looked _nothing_ like the kid I remembered. Tall, strong, and – if it were possible to say such a thing about a Hylian – handsome. Hope shot through me so hard it hurt. "Are you one of the Tri…"

The bang and gunpowder smell of magic drowned out my question, the cursed hags appearing on either side of me. Link raised his sword, unsurprised and unafraid. They ignored him and stared down into my face with eyes both furious and fearful. "I'm afraid we're going to have to find some other options for you, my dear," Koume hissed, her tone frighteningly foreboding.

Kotake frowned in worry. "This one is important to Ganondorf. Maybe we can just brainwash her again."

"Not with one of the Bearers here." Koume raised her hand, a ball of magic flickering inside it. "There's only one option left." Kotake followed suit.

Instinctually I knew what they planned to do. I had only two options, fight or run. I had almost no chance with the latter. Even less chance with the former. I leaped forward and ran.

Their spell hit me with so much force I felt as if I had been hurled into a wall. Burning, stabbing electricity coursed through my body as I struggled to cry out in pain. Darkness enveloped me. And then…

Nothing.

-&-

"….."

_Where am I?_

_Did I die?_

_No…_

_If I'm dead, how can I think?_

_Am I a ghost?_

I gradually became aware of the space around me. I seemed to be standing up, on what I did not know. Darkness surrounded me, even though I blinked several times. I waved my hand in front of my face. Nothing.

A very, very soft glow appeared at my feet and slowly grew lighter. Soon I could make out a pattern in the floor below me. I seemed to be standing on a short pedestal of some kind, with a symbol I didn't recognize.

The room around me grew bright, then dimmed to normal light. A robust, white-haired Hylian man stood in front of me, framed by very, very blue pillars.

I had never really thought about what the afterlife looked like, but I can safely say I had never imagined _this_.

"Welcome, Nabooru, Sage of Spirit, to the Sacred Realm," the old man said. "I am Rauru, the Sage of Light."

**A/N: I know this is slightly different from the explanation given in the game. But I've had the theory that the Sages "awaken" upon perishing in their attempts to fight Ganondorf…if you notice, each sage disappears shortly before you confront the dungeon boss, sometimes sooner. I think when it was translated for the US version, Koume and Kotake's words were changed to make it less dark.**


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: Here is the final chapter. I hope I did the story justice. And that Libby is still out there to read it.**

"Sage of Light?" I demanded. "Are you one of the other six?"

He nodded gravely. "I think you know a couple of the others." He gestured behind him, and I could see four other people, all standing on small platforms like myself.

"Hi, Nabooru!" A Zora girl who looked to be in her teen years waved at me. "How have you been?"

"Ruto?" I pushed past Rauru, who didn't seem to mind, as if he expected this reaction. Ruto was not someone I would have chosen as a Wise Sage, but there she was. As I got closer, I noticed another woman, the white-haired Shekiah from Zelda's bedroom.

"Are you Impa?" I asked, not really knowing enough Shekiah to tell one from another. She nodded gravely, not changing her expression. A wave of fear swept through me. "What happened to Zelda? Did Ganondorf…"

"Zelda is alive, and relatively safe at the moment," she said, and left it at that. Ruto poked my arm, irritated that I had shifted my attention away from her.

I had so many questions, I couldn't think which one to ask first. "How can I understand you? I haven't spoken Hylian since…that day…" I looked around, bemused. "Where are we?"

"We are in the Sacred Realm," Rauru informed me. "The place where the Triforce stood before Ganondorf attempted to steal it, and broke it apart. The place where the Hero of Time slept until he aged enough to battle our common foe." He gestured to a Goron and a little girl who wore clothing similar to Link's. "This is Darunia, and Saria. They are the Fire and Forest sages, respectively. The Goddesses chose them – all of us – when we attempted to assist the Hero on his path."

"Hero? 'Attempted?'" I bit my lip, remembering my brief encounter with Link and the two hags. "Does that mean I'm…that we're…dead?"

"Yes and no," came Rauru's serene reply. "Each of us lost their mortal body to either Ganondorf or one of his servants. But the Goddesses have chosen us to restore the balance of the Triforce, by assisting the Hero of Time further in his quest."

I realized he must be talking about Link, but the choice of title confused me. "Hero of Time? Why's he called that?"

"He slept here for seven years, waiting for the right time to confront the Bearer of Power." Well, that would explain why I hadn't seen him until just now. "He carries the Ocarina of Time and the Master Sword, which allow him to travel back and forth through time to complete his quest." Rauru nodded toward me. "Do you remember meeting him for the first time, in the Spirit Temple? He had already accomplished much of his quest, and knew who _you_ were. He went back in time to recover those gauntlets you wanted, remember? But when Ganondorf attacked Hyrule Castle, technically afterward, his quest had just started."

This didn't make much sense to me. But one thing did stick in my mind; that kid with the tired eyes, staring down at me disappearing into the sand, had already seen dangers beyond my comprehension. No wonder his soul seemed so old for a little boy.

"Okay," I said slowly, trying to get a grip on myself. "So we help Link beat Ganondorf. I'm all for that. What do I do?" I gleefully pounded my right fist into the palm of my left hand. "How about we obliterate those two hags for him?"

"That won't be necessary. Link is battling them as we speak, and I can sense that he has the upper hand."

_Damn. This kid really is a hero._

"You will give him this." Rauru handed me a thick medallion that carried the same symbol of the Spirit Temple. "Within this sigil is the power the Sage of Spirit carries. Lend him your power and he will be ready to battle Ganondorf. In addition, we six will assist him in any small way we can. If Link succeeds in subduing him, the Seventh Sage will give us the signal to seal Ganondorf away in the Dark Realm forever."

"Seventh Sage?" I thought there were supposed to be six. "And what's all this about sealing Ganondorf away? Wouldn't it make more sense to kill him?" Somehow I doubted the King of Thieves would have any trouble with a jailbreak, even one in some ill-defined alternate dimension.

"The Triforce of Power grants immortality to its Bearer," Rauru explained. "Unless Ganondorf is separated from his piece, he cannot be killed."

_Fantastic._ I groaned.

Rauru ignored me, cocking his head to listen to something I couldn't hear. "The Hero of Time has purified the Spirit Temple," he stated. "He is coming now. Nabooru, lend him your power."

Before I could say anything, the other Sages disappeared. The floor beneath me glowed brightly, and a huge crystal rose up out of it. Within that crystal Link stood, and he smiled in accomplishment as it disappeared, a patchwork of small cuts and burns showing he extend of his battle with Kotake and Koume. Just like that, he had destroyed the living nightmares that had made my life hell.

His earnest face blurred slightly as I struggled to compose myself, suddenly feeling foolish. "Link…I really messed up, didn't I?" He patted my shoulder a little awkwardly, not really sure what to say. "I tried to fight him, but with those two…it just wasn't enough." I held out the sigil to him. "Here, take this. Rauru says it'll help."

Link accepted it with many thanks, and began to fade. "Link…" I said softly, as his semi-transparent eyes looked back up at me. "If had known what kind of man you would become, I would have kept my promise…"

I felt so ashamed. To think that I had treated him like some silly little kid, trying to bribe the Hero of Time in his mission to save all of us.

-&-

We could watch Link's progress from our posts, together in that strange place. Ruto babbled to me all throughout Link's trip back to the Temple of Time, but I just watched him. I feared for him, facing the monster that Ganondorf had become. I didn't know the half of it.

At the temple, he met up with another Shekiah. "That's the guy that saved me from the ice," Ruto said, pointing.

To my great surprise, the Shekiah changed form – into Zelda!

Impa hissed between clenched teeth. "That was stupid," she muttered tensely. "There was no need for you to tell him who you are…"

Suddenly I felt as if I had been punched in the stomach. I could see the others react to the sudden pain. I heard an all-too-familiar laugh as Ganondorf mocked Zelda for revealing her true form, heard both her and Link's yells as a crystal barrier formed around her and she disappeared.

"You've got to be kidding," I muttered in disgust. I thought she was smarter than that!

"All is not lost," Rauru's voice boomed across the room. "Link can still accomplish his goal. Come! We must help him enter Ganon's castle."

Suddenly the walls around us disappeared and I found myself standing just outside the ridiculous floating monstrosity, Link staring at it apprehensively. At least, I think I was standing; I couldn't see any part of me, as if I were really a ghost.

I felt a strange pull, and heard Rauru say, "Link! We Sages will assist you. Cross the bridge into the castle!"

I had to laugh when I saw the bridge appear. I felt an elbow in the ribs (probably from Impa) and heard Ruto giggling next to me. But who could blame me? Even though it made sense that the bridge would carry the colors of the Sages' medallions, it was still pretty hilarious to see a bright rainbow appear out of nowhere. Especially in a place like this.

"I'm sure Ganondorf will love this addition to his décor," I muttered. Ruto laughed.

-&-

A lot of things happened that I didn't fully understand. Link spent what felt like hours in the bottom rooms of the castle, trying to undo all the safeguards Ganondorf put in place. Some kind of magic generator stood at the end of each room. Rauru instructed one of us to stand there once Link made it to the end of each one. Our presence would interfere with the magic barriers, and once all of us stood in place, Link could get into the upper tower.

But once he entered the upper tower, the room was closed to us. "I think," Rauru said slowly, "that Ganondorf wanted to make sure the Hero did not have any assistance in his final fight."

All the others looked serene, as if they expected Link to walk back out the door as if he'd merely gone in to get a drink. Didn't they realize how dangerous Ganondorf had become? Link had dispatched Twinrova pretty easily, that was for sure. But Ganondorf had surpassed them seven years ago…and had become crazy enough to try _anything_.

I shuffled there for an indescribable amount of time, unable to tell what was going on from all the yelling behind the door, not to mention the occasional explosion.

Suddenly I felt a strange liberating sensation, as if invisible chains binding me had suddenly ripped away. Suddenly we could see inside the chamber. Link stood there, bleeding and battered, but still alive. Both he and Zelda stared at a crumpled mass on the floor.

The others cheered, but I still felt uneasy. Whatever Ganondorf had done in here, I couldn't believe he had used it all up. Something else was about to happen…

Then, like the rest of the barriers Ganondorf had created with sorcery, the castle itself began to fall apart, Link and Zelda racing through the corridors in an attempt to get out. As the castle crumpled, I felt a twinge of pity, knowing that what was left of Ganondorf was likely getting crushed under a ton of rock. _What a way to go. If I had known what would happen, if I could show him what would happen, would he have changed his mind? How much of this was him, and how much of it was the influence of Twinrova and the Triforce?_

And yet, even as Link and Zelda breathed sighs of relief as the dust settled, I could sense that something was not quite right…

Suddenly the earth trembled, and a ragged figure burst out of the rubble. There was no mistaking the glowing red eyes and the glowing three-triangle seal on one hand.

From the dark figure, a creature emerged, an enormous nightmare vision of demons in old tales, a sharp-tusked pig-like creature with two great forked swords. It knocked Link's sword from his hand and chased him across the ruins.

The others freaked, but I just sighed, wondering where this was all going to end. Rauru said that the Triforce of Power made Ganondorf immortal. So what the hell were we supposed to do?

Zelda threw Link's sword back to him, and he began hacking at the Ganon-creature over and over, trying to find a weak spot. He dodged out of the way as the enormous swords continually just missed slicing him in two. The pig-creature yelled in pain when Link hit his tail, so he focused all his attention on that, sometimes rolling between Ganon's legs to get at it.

Finally, with a shriek that split stone, the monster collapsed, breathing hard. "Sages!" Zelda cried. "Lend me your power so that we can seal him away in the Dark Realm forever!"

I felt the pulling sensation again. The creature struggled to rise, and to my horror, lifted its head and looked straight at me. Or through me, I'm not sure. But he knew I was there.

_Nabooru_, the voice pleaded, flushed with pain and fear. _Help me. Don't let them do this to me. I couldn't control it…I'm still here…_

"Nabooru!" Rauru shouted. "You're not concentrating! Hurry, we don't have time! We have to open the portal before the Hero strikes the final blow!"

Link stood with sword raised, ready to drive the blade into the creature's brain. _Nabooru, please…it took over…I wanted to end our peoples' suffering, and Koume and Kotake said they had the answer…_

I trembled, unwilling to fulfill either request. "I can't," I said softly, not sure if I was addressing Rauru or Ganondorf.

_Help me…_

"Nabooru! We only have one chance at this!"

I wanted to shut my eyes, but being a spirit doesn't work that way. "I'm sorry," I whispered, and pushed what remained of my power in with the other Sages.

Ganondorf cried out in pain and rage, cursing all assembled, his words ringing in my ears as we sent him into the great beyond.

-&-

_One year after the time split…_

I still didn't understand the time travel thing, but I told myself it didn't matter. What mattered was that Hyrule was now back to normal, with all of the other Sages in their proper places, including myself.

With one minor change, of course. I was left to take care of my people alone.

When I asked people if they remembered what happened to Ganondorf, they said that Koume and Kotake had taken him to another country, far from Hyrule. I don't know if the two hags actually said this before they fled, or if the Ocarina of Time had somehow implanted this memory in their heads. In the end, I decided it didn't matter.

Relations with the Hylian King still were not good. But his daughter had somehow managed to influence him now, and he listened to her. I guess she had learned a thing or two in those seven lost years.

All of us involved – meaning the Triforce Bearers and Sages – remembered what happened, while everyone else remained clueless. It was a very isolating feeling, and every once in a while I would send letters to Ruto. I didn't care for her much, she wasn't someone I would have made friends with on my own, but you can't go through something like that with another person and not form some kind of bond.

One day in autumn, one of the guards came to me with a puzzled expression on her face. "You're not going to believe this, but there's some Hylian kid down in the mesa who says he knows you and wants to talk to you. I told him to run along, but he insisted." She showed me a series of scrapes along her bandaged hand.

Mystified, I followed her to the mesa, where Link stood grinning. "Hey there," I said, to the consternation of the guards. "Is there a reason you're roughing up my sentries?"

"Sorry." He handed me a small scroll. "Zelda asked me to deliver this. Political stuff, I guess."

"Thanks." I took it and watched him absently scratch his elbow, still looking for all the world like a little kid rather than a Hero of any kind. "So what are you doing now that there aren't any more evil kings to fight?"

He shrugged. "This and that…a little travel, hanging around the castle…you never know when something might come up."

I motioned for him to sit with me on a flat rock. "Can I ask you something?"

He nodded.

I looked at the ground, not exactly sure how to word this. "Well, I guess it's more of a statement than a question. I know you did what you had to do, but…I wish things had turned out differently." I turned to see his puzzled expression. "I don't think he was born evil…I don't think he was completely evil until the very end. After all, he had Koume and Kotake for parents…that'll mess up anybody…"

He swung his feet like a little kid, but looked up at me with a grave expression. "Do you miss him?"

I sighed. "I regret…that things didn't turn out differently. I think they could have…if so many things hadn't gone wrong." I looked at him. "Are you angry at him…for making you grow up so fast?"

Link thought for a moment, staring up at the clouds above. "Not really. I never felt like I belonged in the Kokiri forest. I knew something strange would happen with me, so why not this?" He patted his little hand on my shoulder. "I made lots of friends, also, that I wouldn't know any other way. They're your friends too. Me and Zelda and the Sages."

I ruffled his hair. I couldn't help it. There's nothing that compares to giving a great hero a noogie. "Thanks, kid," I told him, and meant it. He hopped off the rock and waved as he jogged down the path, returning to the castle.


End file.
